


Only Human

by MentalMassDebation



Category: teen wolf - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe, Always Female Stiles Stilinski, F/M, Female Stiles Stilinski, Magical Stiles Stilinski, Mating, McCall Pack, Pack Bonding, Sexual Assault, Sexual Content, Slow Build, True Mates, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-05-11
Updated: 2014-06-01
Packaged: 2018-01-24 09:08:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 96
Words: 184,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1599398
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MentalMassDebation/pseuds/MentalMassDebation
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"If wishes were werewolves."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you think?
> 
> Thank you for reading! (:

Scott's eyes were still widened slightly as he analysed the 3 large rips through the roof of his mother's car.

Stiles' eyes were just as wide as her best friend's. "Holy sh... Cow." She quickly trailed off, shooting her best friend's mother a sheepish, apologetic look for almost swearing in front of her, to which Melissa simply smiled in amusement to herself.

"Are you sure it was a werewolf that you saw?" Isaac asked, also standing by and checking the scratched up vehicle.

Melissa let out a tired sigh. "Well, let's see now..." She began. "Um... 6 foot tall or more... Furry, red glowing eyes, 4 huge-ass paws and a big ol' black snout in the middle of a his wolf-like face..." Her tone was clearly sarcastic as she spoke. "Um, yeah... Yeah, I'm pretty sure it was a werewolf." She concluded.

"Man, we got rid of the Alpha pack just last year! We've just started our last year of school, been back 2 days and already there's more werewolf bullsh -- crap on the horizon!" Stiles exclaimed, a deep scowl set across her brow. "No offence." She added quickly, shooting both Scott and Isaac a sheepish little grin.

Scott and Isaac merely shared an amused smirk before waving their quirky friend off in unison.

"Oh," Melissa piped up, quickly grabbing the teens' attention back. "And there was also the little detail of it trying to bite me." She added rather casually, though, she looked more angry than afraid.

The 3 teens glanced at one another, panic rising quickly on each of their expressions before turning back to the older woman.

"Mom, were you bitten!?" Scott hissed lowly, his expression somewhere between alarm and outrage.

"Oh, no. Don't worry." Melissa replied calmly, waving a hand of dismissal.

The teens -- Scott in particular of course -- each let out a loud sigh of relief upon hearing the good news.

"Ugh, it was awful." Melissa stated, shaking her head in dismay. "I just had this car detailed! 1100 bucks!" She snapped to herself, glaring angrily now at her torn vehicle.

The 3 teens merely glanced at each other in amusement...

...Just over an hour later, the 3 teens were gathered in Stiles' bedroom and had been so since their little chat with Scott's mother. Thankfully for them, Stiles' father was caught up with a new case back at the station, so for the house was theirs for the night.

On Stiles' bed sat Isaac, who was surrounded in a mess of papers, files and newspaper clippings. While on the floor beside him was Scott, who seemed to have built himself a tiny fortress with the many, many books and texts books. And then there was Stiles, who sat at her desk, in front of her laptop, doing pretty much the same lengthy reading.

"Ugh! This is torture!" Scott groaned, slamming the current book in his lap shut. "And I know torture. What with nearly getting killed on a regular basis." He let out a bored huff and leaned back against the side of the bed.

Isaac chuckled at his friend, but otherwise stayed silent as he continued sifting through the papers surrounding him.

"Yeah, now you know how I feel -- always the researcher, never getting to hit anyone... Or anything." Stiles muttered, mostly to herself though.

Scott smirked. "You hit like a girl anyway."

Stiles turned in her seat to glare at him. "Oh, gosh, Scott!" She exclaimed, clearly being over-dramatic. "Y'know, last time I checked; I am a frickin' girl!" She snapped before turning back around in her seat.

"Something wrong, Stiles?" Isaac piped up, his voice purposely, annoying calm and pleasant.

Scott's smirk widened slightly, his dark brown orbs twinkling with deep amusement.

"Ugh! Yes!" Stiles whined, not bothering to even look away from her laptop this time. "We're getting no where! How is this possible? It's werewolf business. If there's anything we should not suck at, it would most definitely be werewolf business!" She rambled on to herself mainly as she continued to click bored through the web pages.

Scott and Isaac merely shared another amused grin.

"Oh, hey! I found something!" Stiles chimed happily, her anger quickly vanishing into thin air.

Scott and Isaac's grins widened slightly.

"What's the good word?" Isaac asked, mainly to humour the crazy, bi-polar, hyper-active girl.

Oblivious, Stiles replied. "Well, it looks like there have been a few more attacks in the last week and a half, all with the same M.0. as Brady's -- attacked by wild dogs." She explained, reading from the screen.

Scott and Isaac were standing either side of her in a heartbeat, both glancing down at the screen, too.

Thankfully, Stiles was almost used to their quick flash-like movements and barely flinched this time as the boys appeared either side of her.

"Several animal carcasses were found mutilated." Isaac read aloud from the screen. "Well, sounds wolfy..." He said with a half-hearted shrug.

Stiles' eyes widened upon hearing that -- she hadn't read that far down the page yet and was completely mortified. "Aww, no, not like fluffy, little bunnies and stuff..." She whined, pouting sadly at the screen.

Scott rolled his eyes, but couldn't help smirking. "Hey, you think the he stopped to bake it in his little werewolf oven?" He chuckled in amusement, remembering when Stiles had said used that same joke on him.

Stiles simply glared up at her best friend, obviously not impressed this time around. "Funny. You're funny, Scott." She muttered in a low tone.

Scott instantly shut his mouth, seeing that usual crazy look in her greeny-brown orbs and just as quickly turned his gaze from hers.

"Hey, look, don't worry." Isaac piped up, clearly humouring her as he tried to hold on to his smirk. "Bunnies can take good care of themselves. Trust me, okay? I had one when I was a kid and the little fucker nearly bit my pinkie off right after I gave him a carrot."

Stiles rolled her eyes, but couldn't help smirking in amusement. "So, there's another Alpha in town." She said, glancing back to the new information on the screen.

"How'd you know it's an Alpha?" Isaac asked, shooting her a genuinely curious look.

"Well, Scott's mom mention the glowing red eyes..." Stiles noted, trailing off to let the werewolves draw their own conclusions.

"Shit. She's right." Scott groaned. "Why can't we just have one week of peace!?" He whined with a slight pout.

Stiles let out a rather unladylike snort of amusement. "If wishes were werewolves."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Quite the party animal."

"And, um, while there's absolutely no specific explanation for the lunar effect on the human psyche, um, the phases of the moon do seem to exert a great deal of psychological influence."

Halfway through the night, the Sheriff of Beacon Hills and also Stiles' father had come home to find his daughter sprawled back in her desk chair fast asleep and as well as Scott (who was sprawled out on the floor) and Isaac (on the bed) and all of them covered in papers and books and various other articles that littered the room. He hadn't had the heart to wake the teens from their slumber, instead, he shook his head with an amused chuckle before walking off to his own bedroom.

And then, in the morning, he'd told the boys to clear off and get ready for school, so that Stiles could do so herself, too. But before Stiles step foot outside of the house, her father told her that he wanted to know what was going on. He knew about the recent murders and he knew that they probably had something to do with the 'werewolf stuff' -- as he called it.

She'd agreed and after school -- along with Scott, Isaac, and Allison -- she had hopped back into her Jeep and driven straight back home. Although she was reluctant, because of her concern of his safety, she also knew that he was the one person she could trust the most. So now, she sat in back in her room in her desk chair, her father sitting, perched on the end of her and listening closely to her every word as she started from the basics -- just to help him understand it all a little better. He was still very new to all of this supernatural nonsense after all.

"And the, um, the full moon is, well, It seems to bring out the darkest of our qualities. Even with humans -- the number of murders go up on a full moon by 5% at least."

Isaac stood beside Stiles, leaning his hip against the edge of her desk and snorted loudly in amusement. "And yet, ironically, it led to the invention of the Moon Pie." He quipped, biting back a smirk.

Stiles chuckled lightly at that. "Hey, I'm the funny one, okay? Don't take that away from me, dude. It's all I got." She half-joked.

Isaac merely rolled his eyes, though shot her a playful, little grin.

"Anyway," Stiles continued, glancing back to her father. "Ya see, um, the werewolf is such a potent, extreme representation of our inborn, animalistic traits that it emerges fully on the night of the full moon. On every night of the full moon. And also the night before, leading up to the full moon. But that's just like a little preview of the badness that follows the next night."

"Quite the party animal." Allison quipped, smiling fondly between the two male werewolves standing in the room with them right now.

Stiles chuckled, glancing over at her best friend. "Quite." She agreed. "Scott tried to kill me on his first full moon. Bad puppy." She quipped, shaking her head in mock-disappointment.

"Yeah, you're not the only one." Allison stated with an amused grin.

"What!?" Sheriff Stilinski snapped, glaring between his daughter and her best friend. "Is that a joke?" He asked, mainly glaring at the young werewolf now.

"Uh..." Scott looked like a deer caught in headlights. "Yeah..." He mumbled, glancing over at his best friend for help.

Stiles rolled her eyes. "Dad, it was fine. I locked his ass up. All by myself." She stated with a triumphant grin. "Seriously, dad, Scott's the least of your worries. And I'm always gonna be in danger. Whether it's with you being a cop or Scott being a werewolf." She stated with a shrug, as if it were that simple, which it was to her.

Sheriff Stilinski sent Scott one last glare before turning back to his daughter with a tired, little sigh. "You're right." He agreed calmly. "I'm sorry... Please continue." He urged her with a small reassuring smile and a go ahead nod.

Stiles grinned and nodded before carrying on from where she'd left off. "Um, on the night of the full moon, the werewolf -- if it hasn't yet mastered it's control of blood-lust and pent up anger issues -- it acts on pure instinct alone. No conscience, um, predatory and, and really frickin' aggressive."

"So, in other words: they go around like an average male." Allison concluded, shooting a cheeky grin at the werewolf boys.

"On behalf of our gender: 'hey!'" Isaac whined, scowling at the young Hunter.

Allison merely chuckled, clearly having amused herself.

Sheriff Stilinski nodded in acknowledgement of his daughters words, though he stared at her curiously in silence for a few moments before finally speaking. "Stiles, when's the last time you took your Adderall?"

Stiles shot her father a sour look, but answered anyway. "An hour ago, actually." She stated snootily.

Scott smirked in amusement to himself.

Stiles huff, catching her best friend's smug expression from the corner of her eyes. "I'm fine, dad. Just still kinda wired after last night's overload on coffee."

Sheriff Stilinski shot his daughter a clearly disapproving look, but decided not to scald her in front of her friends. For once. He was mainly concerned rather than angry at her. "Well, I think I'll turn in for the night while I still can." He stated, slowly rising from the bed and walking over to the open doorway.

Stiles nodded. "Night, dad."

"Night, kids." Sheriff Stilinski saluted the teens before disappearing from the room altogether.

"Anyway, let's not jump to any conclusions on who this Alpha is yet." Stiles continued when Scott confirmed with a nod that her father was finally in his own bedroom and then shooting a smirk over at the female Hunter.

Allison couldn't help smirking smugly. "I didn't jump." She stated all too innocently. "I took a tiny step and then there were... Conclusions."

Stiles arched a brow at her. "Right." She smirked back, more amused than anything. "The point is that our new wolfman could also be a wolfwoman or anyone who might have been bitten by lately. Most likely the first, though, if it's already an Alpha." She noted that last part mostly to herself. "But if it is a newly bitten wolf -- turned Alpha -- then they might possibly be unaware of their condition. So we can't go out all guns blazing just yet."

"Well, don't you think we should talk to Derek about this?" Isaac suggested, glancing mostly to Scott.

Stiles scoffed. "Yeah. 'Cause he's always so helpful." She muttered under her breath.

Allison smirked to herself, having heard.

Scott nodded at the younger werewolf and then glanced at his best friend. "He's right, Stiles. Derek will probably already know something about this."

Stiles sighed loudly in defeat, already knowing that he wouldn't change his mind on this. Scott was annoying stubborn. Just like his mother. Who she loved. "Fine. Whatever, dude."

Scott grinned. "He's not so bad... Lately."

Allison chuckled at that. "Are you kidding? He's a total brood." She stated with a roll of her eyes.

"Y'know he kicked me out of the loft?" Isaac announced, looking highly irritated.

"You're living with Scott and his bad-ass mom. Why're you complaining?" Stiles quipped.

"Still..." Isaac muttered.

Stiles rolled her eyes. "Great. So, tonight is full moon and once again, we're stupid enough to go out looking for a party of trouble. Oh, I can just tell this night is gonna suck..."

...Later that night, Stiles had been walking in the forest, in circles, she was almost sure of that. She walked out into another clearing and squealed loudly jumping in fright when she felt a large, warm hand grasp her shoulder lightly. She swirled around instantly and sighed loudly in relief, trying to calm her racing heart as she stared up into a familiar pair of greeny-blue orbs.

"Anything yet?" Derek asked, clearly biting back a smug smirk.

Stiles glared back up at him, quickly turning her flashlight off. "Fucking Christ, Derek! We're out here looking for an Alpha werewolf and you're going around, sneaking up on people. You can't do that! I swear, one of these days, you werewolves are gonna give me a fricking heart attack."

Derek merely rolled his eyes, obviously thinking she was being over-dramatic. Which she was.

"At least make some noise." Stiles said. "Maybe we could get you a collar with a bell on it." She added thoughtfully.

Derek glared at her. "Did you find anything or not?" He repeated impatiently.

Stiles huffed at his sour humour -- Sour Wolf, indeed. "Yes, actually." She stated snootily.

Derek seemed to perk up a little then. "What?" He asked, staring expectantly down at her.

Stiles chuckled in pure amusement. "Oh, my God, seriously, you won't believe what I saw. Brittany Podell was making out with Owen Stadeel -- they were parked up just on the edge of the forest -- but Owen is supposed to totally be with Beth Dotty. Seriously, she's a crazy bitch. And when she finds out, I bet she like, rips his wang off with her teeth or something."

Derek stared at the goofy teenage girl for a few moments. He didn't know whether to be confused or annoyed. Finally, he settled with another impatient glare.

Stiles seemed to take the hint and quickly snapped out of her gossip ramblings. "Oh, no, right, Alpha werewolf. Right, no. No sign of him... Or her... Um, how about you?"

Derek let out a tired sigh before answering with a shrug. "Same."

Stiles nodded and glanced around her surroundings briefly.

Derek also glanced around, quickly scanning the forest surrounding them before glancing back to her. "Were there any other cars parked up?" He asked.

Stiles frowned in confusion, but nodded and answered anyway. "Yeah. A few. Like 7 or 8, maybe."

Derek nodded. "Maybe we should knock on a couple of windows -- see if anyone's seen anything."

"Ew." Stiles mumbled, wrinkling her nose in disgust.

Derek rolled his eyes at her. "Get over it. Let's go. Lead the way."

Stiles glared at him, but did as she was told, knowing that he was even more stubborn than Scott. Or even her father.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone has a Mibba account, and is interested -- I'm on there, too, with the same username.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Can I kill him now?"

After knocking on a few car windows and asking around for any signs of the weird and ugly, Stiles and Derek had split up once more and Stiles still hadn't found any signs of, well, anything. She continued, however, to keep searching anyway. In this town, trouble was never far around the corner and it seemed that Stiles would get the trouble she was looking for, just not in the kind she was hoping for.

Shining her small flashlight through the bushes and over the dead leaves, she shuffled slowly through the dark forest, the full moon being the only source of light peaking through the overgrown trees above. She rounded the next set of bushes and huddle of trees before finally finding herself standing at the edge of another small clearing. She glanced around warily as always, shining her flashlight slowly around before deciding it was safe enough to go ahead. She did so, but only managed to get a few paces ahead before she was stopped dead in her tracks. The first thing she heard was a loud cracking noise -- like the sound of a latch releasing -- and then the next thing she felt was something thin wrap around her ankles before tightening and pulling quickly upwards.

Stiles let out a loud yelp, unable to help it as she went up and then dangled upside down in mid-air. She managed to calm herself down a few seconds later and then quickly began to try and swing herself towards the nearest tree.

"Gotcha!"

Stiles let out another yelp at the sound of a loud, gruff and unfamiliar voice. She glanced up in front of her to see a tall, middle-aged man standing over her, pointing a large cross-bow at her face.

The man slowly stepped closer and bent down to take a closer look. "What the fuck?" He mumbled, looking utterly confused by seeing the young, teenage girl.

Stiles stared blankly back up at the man for a few seconds before letting her lungs rip. "Derek! Derek! Derek!" She yelled, struggling violently in mid-air and looking rather pathetic as she did so.

The man immediately stepped back at the sound of a loud roar behind him. He quickly turned around and raised his cross-bow at the werewolf. "Stay the fuck back!" He roared, trying to sound intimidating.

Derek growled, staying where he was for the moment. His eyes burning blue, his razor-sharp teeth bared, he shot the Hunter a dark glare and smirked slightly when he heard the man's heart pummelling his chest. And then in the next moment, he was in front of the man, grabbing the weapon from him and tossing it behind him.

The man backed away, quickly reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small switch-blade.

"Stiles, you okay?" Derek asked, his voice gruff with his shifted vocal chords. Though, his glare remained on the hunter as he did so.

"Oh, yeah. Just peachey." Stiles chirped sarcastically. "Get me down? Please?" She chimed, her smile somewhere between sheepish and sweet.

Derek's eyes slowly returned to their normal clear green, then glaring straight over to the young, teenage girl instead. However, he did as she asked -- since she had asked nicely (which was rare). He stepped over to her, keeping his other senses peeled on the hunter. He reached up, slicing through the rope with his claws before turning back to glare at the hunter once again.

Stiles landed in the piles of dead leaves, landing on her side with a soft thud. "Ow." She muttered, briefly forgetting the werewolf would hear (and then instantly cursing herself in her mind for it). "I mean, 'thanks?'" She shot him another sheepish grin when he shot her another brief glare over his shoulder before turning back to the hunter once again.

"Who are you?" Derek asked the man, still glaring, of course.

When did he not glare?

"The name's Cain." The man grouched. "Whas it to you?" He sneered.

Derek's glare darkened slightly. "You're in my territory, trying to kill my pack, asshole." He countered, his voice still low and his eyes burning blue once more.

As Stiles removed the rope binding her ankles and finally rose to her feet and heard those words fly out of the Beta's (once removed Alpha) mouth, she felt oddly touched. Which was a first, coming from Derek. 'I'm... Pack?' Stiles smiled slightly to herself, but kept her mouth shut. 'Still, he probably knows Scott would kick his little sour-wolf ass for letting me die.' She fought the urge to snort out loud in amusement at that though.

"She's part of your little pack, huh?" Cain quipped, looking highly amused. He glanced over at the young girl and then glanced over to the older werewolf. "Well, I gotta say; I'm impressed, boy." He stated in that thick Southern accent.

Derek merely continued to glare as he noticed the hunter shamelessly check her out from head to toe. However, he found that he had to fight back to urge to let out a loud growl... Or to reach forward and rip the asshole's head off and just be done with it.

Stiles, however, didn't know whether to be highly disgusted or offended. "Excuse me?" She scoffed, now glaring at the hunter as well. She stepped up beside the werewolf's left side and crossed her arms over her chest as she stared over at the man.

"Just sayin' that it's good ta get the fruit while it's stile fresh... An' ripe." Cain replied, smirking over at the werewolf. "He knows what I'm talkin' 'bout." He added with a low and sickening chuckle.

Stiles shuddered in disgust as she continued to glare, whereas Derek seemed to finally reach his tether. Stiles reached forward without even thinking and latched a hand around the werewolf's wrist, holding him back.

Derek stopped and glanced back over his shoulder at her with a look somewhere between confusion and a flat out glare.

Stiles merely rolled her eyes before letting her hand slip from his wrist and back to her side and then glaring back over at the hunter. "Okay, first of all -- ew." She stated, wrinkling her nose at the very idea. "And second of all -- it's not what your dirty, little mind is thinking. At all. Again -- ew."

Derek fought back the urge to frown slightly. Instead, he held another glare over at the hunter, his eyes still blazing blue.

"We're actually hunting werewolves. Just like your sorry ass." Stiles sneered. "Rope? Seriously? They're werewolves with sharp claws, dude." She stated in a 'duh' tone of voice and looking at him as if he were completely stupid, which she truly believed to begin with anyway.

Cain merely laughed out loud at that explanation. "Ha! You? Huntin' werewolves?" He seemed highly amused by that. "Funny."

"I can assure you that she's quite capable of looking after herself." Derek sneered, still glaring, always glaring.

Stiles fought back another touched smile at that, even if she knew that it was a total lie. She was just the brains. That was all she ever was going to be. And she was actually okay with that. She was just happy to help. And she had saved Scott's and even Derek's asses on a near enough regular basis for the last 3 and a half years. She was still alive, so she must have been doing something right.

"Right. No. Sure." Cain quipped, smirking in amusement as he glanced between the pathetic couple. "Lemme ask ya somethin', sweetheart -- how many werewolves you taken out?" He asked her with a smug smirk and a wicked glint in his dark blue orbs.

Stiles stared blankly at him for a few moments before responding. "As of today or... ?"

Cain let out a few loud cackles, once again highly amused. Pathetic. "Lemme tell ya somethin', sweetcheeks --" He reached up to his necklace. "I tore a tooth from the mouth of every wolf I sliced open."

Once again, Derek let out a loud growl and lurched forward, this time grabbing the hunter by his throat. He let out another growl when the hunter tried to swipe his blade and instantly grabbed his wrist, squeezing tightly until his bones cracked.

Cain let out a loud scream, but glared defiantly down at the werewolf as he held him up in mid-air.

"Wait, so you're just going around killing them for fucking sport!?" Stiles exclaimed, stepping beside the two men and glaring up at the hunter.

Derek continued to glare up at him, holding him up by his throat and growling lowly.

Cain merely laughed, choking slightly at the end through his painful broke and bleeding bones. "Well, see, thas the thang -- their pelts fetch quite a pretty penny in Sri Lanka an' it's a lil' hard ta skin a werewolf when they're alive. I'm in it purely for the money, o' course."

Derek's growls grew louder, but he waited for Stiles to finish her interrogation.

"And it doesn't even bother you that a werewolf is still a person?" Stiles snapped. She felt just as personally towards this as Derek did. Scott was her best friend; her brother; and a werewolf. And so was Isaac and Cora and Boyd and Erica and Jackson and even Derek and Peter (who were weirdly, still her friends and she did care for them, maybe not nearly as much as Scott, but still).

"Not really, no." Cain chirped back, without a care in the world. It seemed like he wasn't even aware of his broken wrist anymore, which pissed the werewolf off even more, of course.

"Well, seems like we're not the only ones looking for a party." Stiles stated sourly.

"Can I kill him now?" Derek asked with another low, threatening growl.

"They're suckers for that whole sexual heat thing. They can sense it from miles away. Isn't that right, boy?" Cain stated, glancing suggestively between the pathetic couple. A human and a werewolf; an abomination in his mind.

"Stiles, I really would like to rip his throat out right now." Derek growled out, his claws digging into the hunter's throat and now lightly drawing blood.

"With your teeth?" Stiles chirped, unable to help herself. She simply chuckled when he shot her a brief glare. "Derek, he's human, dude. You're not a killer, remember?" She asked, her tone serious as she shot him a pointed glare.

Derek stayed glaring up at the hunter for a few more moments. He then let out a loud sigh of defeat and shoved the man back onto the ground, causing him to land clumsily on his backside.

Stiles smiled in approval to herself before the werewolf shot her another brief glare, though, this time with his clear green orbs instead of his blazing blues.

"Get the fuck out of here." Derek snapped, letting out one last warning growl.

Cain stumbled quickly back up to his feet before shuffling off into the forest as quickly as he could.

Derek glared after the hunter for a few moments before swirling around to see the teenage girl stalking off in the other direction. "Stiles!" He called-growled out to her, now glaring after her.

Stiles continued on, simply ignoring him, like he always did to her.

"Where the hell are you going?" Derek asked, suddenly appearing beside her.

Stiles jumped slightly, mostly out of habit now -- somehow, she'd never gotten used to that whole sneaky, werewolf, ninja shit. "God, don't do that!" She hissed, shooting him a glare.

Derek fought back the urge to smirk in amusement before repeating his question. "Stiles, where are you going?"

"To find the others." Stiles replied as she continued on through the forest, the werewolf following closely beside her. "I think I know where to look for our new Alpha. We just have to make it there before the mein furrier."


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Can I lose her somewhere along my way?"

Derek sat in the passenger's seat of Stiles' beat-up, good ol' Jeep as Stiles herself sat in the driver's seat, putting some serious pedal to the medal. "Do you really need to go so fast?" He asked, shooting her a slightly disapproving look.

Stiles side-glanced him as she replied. "Since when does the need for speed bother you, sourwolf?" She chirped with a teasing grin.

Derek fought back a little growl and instead glared at her. "Stop calling me that." He muttered, glaring back out of the passenger's window, like he had been previously.

"Are you sure about this, Stiles?" Isaac piped up from the backseat, looking a little uneasy about the entire thing.

Stiles shrugged casually as she continued speeding through the town. And she was grateful that she knew the place like the back of her hand, otherwise she'd probably have her dad on her ass. "That hunter was an asshole, but he was right about one thing -- you werewolves do love the whole 'mix-bloodlust-with-heat-lust' thing. So, I figured that the club is our best bet."

Cora scoffed quietly from her seat in the back beside Isaac and behind her big brother; Derek. "I resent that first part about the werewolves... Even if it's true."

Stiles chuckled quietly to herself, but managed to keep her silver tongue to herself this time. "Is Allison still with us?" She piped up, though more to herself as she took a brief look in her rear-view mirror.

"Yeah. We're all good." Isaac said after turning around to check that Allison's car was still following closely behind.

"That girl is almost as lethal as me behind the wheel." Stiles half-joked, chuckling lightly to herself.

"Yeah, about that -- where'd you learn to drive?" Isaac asked, gripping the back of her seat when the Jeep took a sudden swerve around the next street corner.

"Grand Theft Auto, aged 10, yo!" Stiles replied rather proudly without missing a beat, a small grin playing at the corners of her lips as she gripped the wheel tighter and pushed her foot down farther.

"Jeez, Stilinski, you drive like a fricking spaz." Cora mumbled, following his lead by gripping the back of her big brother seat.

"You pup's just need to chill." Stiles chimed...

...When they group had finally made it to the club; Golden Globes -- they parked up the vehicles across the street and quickly piled out.

"So, what's the plan, Stilinski?" Lydia asked, arching a ridiculously perfect, auburn brow at the rather nerdy girl.

"The plan?" Stiles froze slightly. "Um..." She hadn't thought that far ahead. Not really. 'Damn. I really need to cut back on the Adderall. I think it's starting to scramble my brains...'

Derek, as usual, shot her a glare. "Of course you thought ahead." He stated sarcastically, yet still somehow knowing exactly what she was thinking. He let out another little huff before stalking across the street and towards the busy entrance of the nightclub.

"Wait! We don't have a plan! Derek! Oh, for crying out lou --" Stiles paused, letting out a loud and frustrated huff as she watched the others follow quickly after the Beta, Scott closely beside him, with Allison on his other side.

Thanks to the handy work of Danny -- after much convincing on Ethan's part -- he had fixed the group up with fake I.D. All, except for Derek, of course.

"Hey, shouldn't you're dad be helping? Isn't this kinda his thing?" Isaac asked, glancing curiously at the young female hunter.

Allison shrugged lazily, a small, but smug smirk on his lips. "He's on a date tonight."

"And totally unaware of your whereabouts." Scott added, smirking suggestively at his ex-girlfriend girlfriend.

Allison rolled her eyes and playfully slapped his shoulder as the group slowly entered into the large and crowded building. The lights were low, the drum and bass music blaring through the large speakers on each neon-coloured wall.

"Ugh. Get a room, you two." Stiles piped up, wrinkling her nose and shooting her best friend a look of horror.

Scott merely laughed, his dark chocolate-brown orbs twinkling brightly in amusement right back at her.

"Shut up and split up." Derek ordered.

"Uh, excuse you, sour wolf, but you're not the Alpha anymore." Lydia quipped, shooting him a clearly displeased look. If there was one thing the fiery redhead hated; it was being told what to do.

"Yeah, actually, Scott kinda is." Stiles piped up, smiling sheepishly between the two werewolves.

Derek, again, shot another glare her way. "Fine." He stated, all too calmly. "Scott," He said, looking to the True Alpha. "What's the plan?" He asked, though, he was clearly humouring them both.

This time, Stiles glared over at the 'sour wolf.' Although, she managed to hold her tongue -- having had good practise with the likes of this asshole. Instead, she let out a huff and folded her arms over her chest.

Scott looked a little caught off guard for a few moments. Although, he was mainly stunned that Derek was even asking him, even if he was subtly taunting him. "Uh... Yeah -- what Derek said; let's split up. In pairs, just for safety."

"Does that mean I have to chose a werewolf for protection?" Lydia asked, looking slightly mortified by the mere thought.

Stiles rolled her eyes. While she really had always looked up to the stunning redhead -- and kind of had a major girl crush on her, too -- she really did detest the girl sometimes. But then, there were moments, just moments where she was truly sweet and caring.

"We're an odd number," Derek noted. "I'll go on my own." He stated, clearly not asking for permission and then just like that, he had already disappeared into the crowds.

Scott simply nodded, not really being bothered to fight back. Besides, he knew that Derek could more than look after himself. "I'll go with Allison." He stated.

"Naturally." Stiles chirped, rolling her eyes playfully at the cute couple.

Scott simply shot her a playful glare in return, Allison doing very much the same.

"I'll take little red." Cora piped up, shooting the red-headed banchee a smug smirk.

Lydia simply rolled her eyes, seeming bored, if anything. "Fine. Whatever." She agreed, her voice barely a drawl.

Stiles grinned over at the last un-paired werewolf. "Looks like it's just you and I, girl-curls!" She chimed teasingly with a cheeky glint in her eyes.

Isaac rolled his eyes, though he couldn't help smiling in amusement before turning to Scott. "Can I lose her somewhere along my way?"

Scott chuckled loudly at that and nodded, clearly humouring the younger werewolf to solely annoy his best friend. "Be my guest, dude."

"Hey!" Stiles snapped, pouting slightly, but unaware of it. "I'm right here, douche!"

Scott chuckled again, pretending to ignore her. "Just remember that you're the one who has to tell her dad; the Sheriff."

Stiles glared between the two sniggering werewolves. "I will kill you both in your sleep." She muttered under her breath before stalking off.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I'm done dreaming, baby."

"So, uh," Isaac piped up as he and Stiles searched the upper-level of nightclub. "The Homecoming dance is coming up..." He trailed off, though, he was clearly going somewhere with this.

Stiles arched a brow at him briefly as she then began to absentmindedly search the crowds again. Although, she didn't exactly know who she was looking for -- and that was where her current werewolf companion would come in handy. "Is that you're not-so subtle way of asking me to go with you?" She quipped, unable to help smiling in amusement.

Isaac huffed. "Well, I was gonna ask Allison, but she and Scott sorted their shit out, so..." He trailed off again, but this time it was because he realised how bad that had actually sounded.

And he was right -- because Stiles looked rather offended, even if she was still only teasing him. "Gee, you sure know how to make a girl feel special, Lahey." She retorted, though she was still smiling in amusement.

"Fuck, Stiles -- that's not..." Isaac huffed again, though this time he seemed a little flustered.

"Relax, dude." Stiles told him with a wave of dismissal. "I'm just kidding around."

Isaac let out a little breath, looking somewhat relieved. "Sorry." He mumbled. "It's fine. Just forget I said anything." He said, shaking his head to himself.

"It's cool." Stiles replied with a lazy shrug. She adored Isaac and they'd become close friends over the last couple of years, but she'd never seen him quite that way -- which was good, because thankfully he didn't see her that way either. "I'll go with you. We'll have fun." She finally agreed with an enthused grin and a nod.

Isaac smiled brightly, his dark blue orbs lighting up. "Great." He chirped back.

Stiles chuckled. "Why didn't you ask Lydia?" She asked, looking more curious now. "I mean, didn't you used to have a crush on her?"

Isaac shrugged lazily. "Eh, used to." He replied. "Besides, I was kinda crushing on just her looks, 'cause... Well, she's kinda a bitch." He added that last part with a sheepish little grin.

Stiles had to laugh at that. "Yep. That's our lovely Red." She quipped, nodding in agreement. "What about Cora?" She asked curiously once again. "It's obvious that you like her -- the way you look at her all dreamy-eyed." She shot him another teasing grin.

Isaac felt his cheeks flood heavily with heat at her words. "Yeah..." He mumbled. "But I don't really feel like loosing a limb to Derek." He muttered rather bitterly.

Stiles chuckled at that, shaking her head in dismay. "Yeah... I don't even know why I asked." She agreed with a light sigh. 'Sourwolf is so frigging mean sometimes...' She thought as she continued to look around, the younger werewolf trailing closely beside her as they sifted slowly through the crowds. "Hey, you sense anything yet? Smell any unfamiliar wolves?" She asked, glancing around the never-ending crowds of young adults.

Isaac shook his head before he, too, began shifting his gaze through the dancing, drinking, sweaty crowds.

Stiles frowned slightly. "Huh... Maybe I was wrong..."

...Tonight, Derek had decided to treat himself to a drink at the bar. It wasn't often that he drank -- mainly because being a werewolf meant that he'd have to drink 7 times the average amount for a regular person. But considering that these stupid kids that he'd managed to 'pack' himself with were grating on his very last nerve. And top of the suspect list, as usual, was McCall and Stilinski. Especially Stilinski. But that was an entirely different story.

Derek ordered a couple of shots of golden tequila and quickly knocked them both back one after the other before moving back into the crowds to continue his search for this new Alpha. Whoever the hell they were.

Derek wandered carelessly through the dancing bodies, subtly scenting each and every one of them. But still, no luck and each passed for being human (under all that stale booze smell.) And then it wasn't until he'd done his entire round of the dance floor that when he'd finally returned back to the bar for another couple of shots that he finally seemed to have found what -- or who he was looking for.

A woman.

And a rather gorgeous one at that. Seriously. More beautiful than Kali. Or even his mother -- who would always be the most beautiful woman he'd ever been lucky enough to have known. Nonetheless, he'd never seen someone (else) so beautiful. With her long, straight, black hair, her big, ocean blue orbs, her lightly tanned skin and flawless complexion, her thin, perfectly arched, black brows and long, thick black lashes, her muscular, but still slender and elegant limbs. She basically looked like an exotic model, with her perfect square nose and her incredibly full, red-glossed lips.

Derek glared over at her as she sat at the other end of the bar. And even though she didn't seem to notice him, he knew just how aware she was of him. Her beauty didn't fool him. Especially not after the horrid history he himself had with women like her.

When one of the bartenders came over to him, Derek ordered his shots anyway and simply sat there waiting. And watching her, very closely and very blatantly.

'She's no Stilinski...'

Derek froze at that thought, finding his glare quickly averting back to his lap.

'What the fuck? Where the fuck did that come from?'

With his thoughts suddenly distracting him, Derek didn't seem to notice someone sitting down on the bar stool beside him. At least, not until they had spoken up.

"Well, hello there, handsome. Feel like buying a gal a drink?"

It was her.

Derek's head snapped back up, his gaze landing on the exotic, stunning she wolf.

She simply smiled at his slightly startled expression. "I saw you watching me." She stated knowingly -- as if she already knew that he knew that she knew he was. However, she oddly taken his glaring at her as something else.

Derek instantly pulled himself together and glared back at her.

"There ya go." The bartender finally returned, placing the couple of shot glasses down on the bar.

Derek handed him a 20 dollar bill without a word, his glare still placed on the Alpha she wolf.

"Ohh! Tequila!" She chimed, clapping her hands in excitement before reaching out to take one of the shots.

Derek instantly slapped her hand away before taking both shots in both his hands and quickly knocking them back again, one after the other. He then slammed the empty glasses back down on the bar, his glare not even flickering from her the entire time.

She pouted at him slightly, but then quickly broke out into another wide grin. "I'm Silver." She introduced herself, holding out her right hand towards him.

"I didn't ask." Derek retorted, still glaring at her.

Silver chuckled. "You're Derek, right?" She arched a brow, but continued -- clearly already know (too much according to Derek himself.) "Yeah, you're uncle Peter used to talk about you a lot. He's quite fond of you, y'know." She stated rather than asked, wearing a little smirk.

Derek glared at her, still. "How do you know Peter?" He asked, arching a brow and giving her a 'talk or I'll kill you' look.

Silver's smug simply widened. "Oh, he and I go way back..." She trailed off, now wearing a rather suggestive look.

Derek pulled a disgusted face, clearly taking the hint and not wishing to hear any more than that.

Silver chuckled at his expression, her orbs twinkling in amusement. "He forgot to mention how gorgeous his nephew really is." She stated, smirking slyly.

"Save you're horny werewolf shit for someone who actually gives a fuck." Derek bit back, glaring at her once more.

Silver pouted slightly at him again. "Let's just get a couple of things straight here, honey --" She purred, her voice low and her expression quickly growing darker by the second now. "1: I'm the Alpha of this town now. And 2: I always get what I want. And what I want is you."

Derek's own expression darkened. "Well, you can dream on, bitch." He all, but growled.

Silver merely grinned, slowly leaning closer to him. "I'm done dreaming, baby."


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Because he's a good boy."

"Don't worry, Derek," Silver slowly rose from her bar stool. "I can wait for you. As long as it takes." She told him. "But I will have you." She all, but purred. She shot him one last smug smirk before slipping off through the crowds and towards the exit.

Derek simply glared after her, trying to control himself from just going after her a ripping her throat out. With his teeth. However, he knew that he was no match for an Alpha -- even if he knew he'd get a few hits in before she pummelled him to death. Because there was no way he was going to join her, in any way, shape or form of the sense.

After a few moments, Derek managed to calm himself down. He slipped from his own bar stool and slowly made his way to the entrance. Once outside the club, he quickly dug into his black, leather jacket pocket and pulled out his cellphone. He quickly swept his thumbs across the touch screen, typing in his message to the others before sending it and then simply waiting.

Thankfully, Derek didn't have to wait more than a couple of minutes before the others started pouring out of the club.

First came Cora and Lydia. Cora smelt her big brother's scent just before she spotted him and then she and the redhead quickly made their way over to him.

"Hey. What's going on?" Cora asked, eyeing her brother carefully. Even if he wasn't the same Derek she'd known when she was younger, she could still sense when he was annoyed, upset or worried about something.

"I found the Alpha. But wait 'til the others get here." Derek replied simply.

Cora nodded in response, trusting him completely, of course. However, she was annoyed that he hadn't called her a little sooner after finding the Alpha.

Scott and Allison finally made their way out of the building, Scott instantly spotting them and tugging his girlfriend gently along towards them.

Derek was slowly beginning to grow concerned over his first-bitten Beta and the nerdy teenage girl. But it quickly vanished at the sight of them exiting the club and he actually heard himself let out a tiny sigh of relief.

"What's going on?" Stiles asked after jogging over to the group, Isaac trailing closely behind her.

"Derek found the new Alpha." Lydia pointed out to the rest of the group.

Their eyes widened slightly.

"Well, where is he?" Scott asked, glancing at the older werewolf.

Derek let out a little sigh, looking slightly annoyed. "She's gone now." He replied, earning a few surprised looks. "But she'll definitely be back... Unfortunately." He added that last part with a slight scowl.

"And by the look on your face -- I'm guessing that she's not here to just settle down and fit in with us regular folks." Stiles noted, though, she just wanted the confirmation.

"Something like that, yeah." Derek mumbled, frowning deeply and looking rather troubled now.

"What're you not telling us?" Scott asked, eyeing him suspiciously. "What really happened, Derek?" He asked.

Derek let out a loud and defeated sigh. He knew that Scott was almost as stubborn as him. And it was kind of endearing -- the way the kid reminded him of himself at that age -- when it didn't piss him off intently, that is. "Apparently, she and Peter had a little thing going on when they were younger..."

"Um, ew." Lydia muttered.

Stiles scoffed, smirking in amusement at the redhead. "You're the one who's had creeper wolf's tongue down her throat." She pointed out with a smug look.

Lydia glared at her. "We've already established that he mind-raped me into resurrecting his pervy werewolf ass." She snapped back, clearly still bitter about the entire ordeal.

Stiles merely continued to smirk smugly to herself, a few of the others also biting back their own grins of amusement. Even sour wolf looked like he wanted to burst out laugh at that.

"So, is she here for uncle Peter or... ?" Cora asked, turning back to her big brother.

Derek's expression quickly morphed back to its previous concern. "No... No, she's here for us."

"Us? What'd you mean, 'us'?" Isaac piped up, looking as confused as the others.

Derek let out another defeated sigh before explaining. "She's here to claim this pack; Scott's pack. She knows that Scott is a True Alpha. She wants me to kill you in order to take your place, so that she can join the pack as Alpha female and take control over your pack." He explained with another huff.

"This isn't bad, though..." Stiles said, looking ever optimistic. "I mean, we've all been through worse -- we handled an entire pack of Alphas and still live to tell the gruesome tale."

"Technically, that crazy Jennifer bitch 'handled' the Alphas." Lydia noted. She glared slightly to herself, remembering said bitch snap the Alpha twin's necks like a fricking twig!

Derek gritted his teeth just at the mere mention of that manipulative, repulsive (on the inside) woman.

Stiles frowned slightly, seeing the redhead's point. "Okay, true." She agreed with a defeated little huff. "But your pack is bigger now. I mean, as well as Scott being an Alpha now, don't forget about the other two we also have; Ethan and Aiden. Plus, you got Isaac, Cora and Derek on your side... And maybe Peter... My point is -- we could easily take this she wolf bitch out."

"Well, that's along the same lines of what I was thinking." Derek noted.

Stiles shot the sour wolf a brief smile before turning back to her best friend. "See? She can't touch us. We're no match for her and we're undefeated, yo." She added that last part with a cheery grin, though mainly trying to lighten the mood between the group.

If only things were that simply, some of them thought.

And as is on cue, just as the group reached their vehicles, a loud roar sounded from behind them.

"Holy fuck! What is that?" Stiles yelped, quickly ducking behind Scott.

The entire groups' eyes widened as they stared at the odd reptile-looking creature. Though, they were confused at to where the roar had come from when they caught sight of the literally mouthless, scale-covered face. It's eyes were tiny, close together, but burned bright yellow, unlike the golden orbs of a werewolf. It stood at least 6 foot tall, naked as the day it was born, a tiny, docked-looking spike of a tail hanging at it's backside. Razor-sharp claws tipped at it's elongated feet as well as it's large, tallon-like hands. And then there were the tiny, black, Devil-like horns sprouted on either side of it's forehead, his entire scaly form a sickly, pale gray colour.

"T-that, uh... That looks like a big, scaly demon, Stiles." Isaac noted calmly, though, his wide eyes were still glued to the creature. It was almost as scary as that Kanima thing that Jackson morphed into a couple of years ago.

"Uh-huh..." Stiles mumbled in acknowledgement, her eyes also still focussed solely on the half-lizard, half-fish-looking creature.

"Uh, D-Derek... You know what the frick this thing is?" Scott mumbled, his dark chocolate orbs flickering warily between the creature and the older werewolf.

"Not a clue..." Derek mumbled back, his eyes also peeled to the creature. He'd never seen anything like it. The fricking Kanima was just about the worst he'd ever encountered. But where this thing didn't actually look as frightening -- more like disturbing, what with the no mouth thing -- this creature was certainly a lot bigger, both in brawns and height.

"Why is it just staring at us?" Lydia hissed, glancing hastily between her 'friends' for an explanation. If it wasn't for Aiden, she seriously would have thought about not hanging out with these guys anymore. Even if she had grown oddly accustomed to them. Even 'sour wolf' -- as Stiles called the brooding, handsome Hale.

"Not a clue..." Derek repeated as the group and the creature shared this somewhat awkward stand-off.

"How 'bout you wolves just make Kibble outta whatever the heck it is and ask questions later?" Stiles hissed, glancing mainly between Scott and Derek.

The creature's bright orbs turned to the nerdy teenage girl and it let out a low hiss as it blatantly glared at her.

"Uh, Stiles..." Cora murmured. "I think it understood you..."

Stiles gulped silently, hiding even further behind her best friend for protection.

Scott quickly glanced behind him and was grateful and somewhat astounded that no one else had seemed to notice. Then again, most of the people wandering aimlessly around were drunk out of their little human minds.

"Ugh, it's so ugly." Lydia said, her face wrinkling in disgust as she eyed the creature blatantly.

The creature's glare quickly snapped over to the redhead and it let out another low, threatening hiss.

"Lydia..." Stiles mumbled. "Shut up..."

The creature's glare then turned to Scott, it's eyes narrowing at the werewolf. It let out another loud roar through it's nostrils (it seemed) and then began to slowly move closer to the group.

"Whoa! Okay! Kill it! Kill it now!" Stiles exclaimed, shoving her best friend gently forward.

"Yes. Okay. Kill it." Lydia muttered, quickly taking her place by Stiles and behind both Scott and Allison.

Scott's eyes glowed their usual golden glow, his claws slowly protruding from his fingertips and his canines slowly lengthening. He took a step forward, attempting to warn the creature.

Derek, too, let out a low warning growl, his own eyes now burning blue. He took a step forward, attempting to block it from coming any further; towards his pack.

"Wait," Allison piped up, softly grabbing her boyfriend's arm. "This thing is probably still human somewhere deep down. Just like the Kanima." She stated, shooting the creature a rather sympathetic look.

The creature paused, seeming to have been listening to their conversation. It's gaze slowly drifted over to the young, female hunter and it looked a little intrigued this time.

Scott paused, though, he was still ready to attack.

"I hate to say this, but she's right." Isaac said, looking slightly annoyed, to say the least. Even if Jackson had been a douche his entire life, he still understood his pain. Especially after all the pain Isaac himself had suffered.

"And it hasn't attacked us... Yet." Cora piped up, still gazing warily at the creature.

Derek suddenly glanced curiously at the creature -- his baby sister did make a very valid point there.

"What's it doing?" Allison mumbled to herself, staring back at the creature with the same intrigue it had taken with her.

"It's stalling..." Scott stated, suddenly realising.

Derek frowned slightly, wondering how the hell the pup' had gotten there before he had. "It's keeping us here..." He stated, though more to himself.

"Why? What? Why? Why is it doing that?" Stiles asked, looking more concerned by the moment.

And it was then that Derek heard that all-too familiar voice; her voice. It made his skin crawl. And not in a pleasant way.

"Because he's a good boy, that's why."


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You guys owe me gas money."

Silver chuckled lightly, clearly amused as she took in the groups wary and alert expressions. "Relax, peeps." She told them. "There's no need to make a scene."

"Could have fooled us." Stiles muttered, motioning to the fish-lizard creature.

"Stiles, shut up." Derek practically huffed out, briefly shooting the human teenage girl a warning glare before turning that glare back onto the new she wolf in town. He didn't really mean to sound so harsh, but the girl was practically asking to be killed.

Stiles did as she was told -- for once -- but not without glaring daggers at the back of the sour wolf's head.

Silver chuckled, now obviously amused by the so-called pack's bickering. "So, this is your pack, Derek?" She scoffed loudly, her smug gaze taking in every single one of them. "A bunch of unruly teenagers? Oh, your mother would be proud." She mocked with another smirk.

"You shut the fuck up about my mother." Derek all, but growled, his voice gruff and dangerously low.

Silver's smirk simply widened before her eyes drifted over to the True Alpha of this pathetic excuse for a pack. "And Scott -- the True Alpha, huh? And so young." She said, her voice still taunting. However, she had to admit, she was rather impressed with the young wolf.

"What'd you want? For Derek to kill me and take over?" Scott asked, scowling at her. "Even if he did -- that's not how it work. He still wouldn't become a True Alpha."

"Yeah, it takes character and will, not murderous intent and no moral compass." Stiles stated in an all too snooty tone.

Silver simply continued to smirk. "Blood works just as well." She stated with a knowing expression.

"What'd you mean?" Allison asked, shooting her a suspicious look.

Silver's gaze slowly drifted back to Derek, her smirk growing even wider. "Derek's mother was also a True Alpha. All he has to do is kill you and kill Peter to reclaim his birthright."

"Derek, is that true?" Scott asked, glancing to the Beta.

"My birthright?" Derek sneered at her, ignoring the other Alpha completely. "Yeah, it's true." He snapped without even taking his eyes off of her. "My mother was a True Alpha and when she was murdered, that right passed on to her first born."

"Laura." Stiles mumbled.

Derek sighed and nodded. "I never wanted to take that away from her. I was happy to have her take care of me. And then Peter fucked up the entire line and I couldn't just sit back and do nothing."

Scott nodded. "It's okay, dude, I understand."

"And if you think that we're just gonna lay back let you overrule us, then you're really sadly mistaken." Lydia snapped, glaring over at the she wolf along with the rest of her friends; her pack; whether she liked it or not.

Derek turned his weary gaze back to the she wolf, once again, glaring at her. "It doesn't matter, 'cause I'm not gonna do it. I'm not your fucking puppet. This is my pack; whether I like it or not, they're my family now. So take your little pet and get the fuck outta my town."

"Your town?" Silver snarled back, her eyes burning red as she glared angrily at the disrespectful Beta.

The group sprang into defence mode, the wolves' eyes all burning red, blue and gold and their claws at the ready. Even Lydia and Stiles held hands and prepared themselves for a fight.

The creature let out a loud roar and made a move towards the group, though was stopped when Silver held up her hand to make him. "Chill, Bo."

"'Bo'?" Allison asked, glancing softly at the creature.

"That thing has a name?" Isaac muttered, glaring warily at the creature.

Silver ignored their questions, her red, blazing orbs glaring dangerous between Derek and Scott. "This is my town now. You'd do well to remember that, Hale." She all, but spat.

Derek simply glared back at her, ready to take her down if he needed to.

"This shit isn't over." Silver sneered, shooting the group one last look before swirling around and walking back down the street. "Not by a long shot." She called without even turning around. "Move it, Bo!" She yelled angrily.

The creature -- Bo hissed loudly at the group, glaring at Derek one last time before darting off after the she wolf.

The group stood in silence for a few moments, mainly collected themselves.

"What the heck just happened?" Stiles piped up, the silence finally becoming too much for her.

"What are we gonna do?" Isaac asked, glancing between Scott and Derek. "You heard what she said."

"Nothing." Scott said.

"Nothing? Are you serious?" Stiles asked, shooting her best friend an incredulous look.

"We don't know everything yet." Scott said. "Maybe we can try reasoning with her."

"Yeah. Good one." Lydia chided.

"It worked with Deucalion." Scott reminded with a pointed glare.

Stiles scoffed loudly. "Deucalion had no choice." She pointed back.

Scott huffed and rolled his eyes. "Well, then, maybe we should talk to Peter." He said, glancing to Derek.

"Why am I not surprised that Peter used to bone someone almost as criminally insane as himself." Stiles muttered.

Derek smirked at that. "Yeah. Maybe we should."

"Great." Cora chirped. "Any idea of where he is?"

"Last I heard, he was in Portland, visiting a 'friend.'" Derek stated with a lazy shrug.

"He has friends?" Lydia asked, looking completely serious.

Stiles chuckled at that. "That is a shocker." She agreed.

Lydia shot her a small smirk.

Derek rolled his eyes, but couldn't help smirking again. "I'll give him a call."

Scott nodded. "You do that and I'll see if Deaton knows anything."

"He usual knows more than any of us." Stiles pointed out with a rather irritated look.

Derek nodded at the younger werewolf. "Let me know if anything comes up."

"Allison, you're driving me home, right?" Lydia asked with an all too sweet tone of voice.

Allison smirked in amusement and glanced at Scott, who nodded before he and Allison shuffled off towards her car.

"See ya." Lydia chirped towards the others before trailing off after the young couple.

"Great. So, I gotta drive you pups home again." Stiles grumbled, walking slowly towards her Jeep.

"Just shut up and get it the car." Derek ordered, but not without another smug smirk.

Stiles glared at him. "You guys owe me gas money."


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Night, Bilinski."

"Stiles, where are you? It's almost 4A.M."

Stiles let out a bored little huff as she leaned lazily against one of the many concrete pillars in Derek's loft. "Just at Derek's with Cora and Isaac. We ran into a little trouble, so Scott dropped Allison and Lydia off before he went off to see Deaton."

"The weird vet guy?"

Stiles chuckled in amusement. "Yes, dad -- 'the weird vet guy.'"

"Are you coming home at all tonight then?"

Stiles let out another bored huff. "Probably not... I'm so glad it's a Friday."

The Sheriff chuckled. "Alright. Well, just stay safe, kiddo. I worry about you, y'know." 

Stiles smiled softly to herself. "I know, dad. But don't worry, I got a bunch of werewolves taking care of my ass 24/7. Not to mention a bad-ass huntress and a silver-tongued banshee. I think I'll be okay." She chuckled lightly. "Besides, I'm pretty bad-ass, too."

The Sheriff chuckled again. "Just come home in one piece."

"No promises there." Stiles chirped back teasingly, unable to help herself.

"Stiles," The Sheriff warned. "Don't even joke about it."

Stiles pouted to herself. "Fine. Sorry... I'll see you soon, dad."

"Alright, kiddo. Night."

"Night, dad." Stiles whispered before hanging up and shoving her cellphone back into her hoodie pocket.

"Your dad giving you a hard time?" Isaac piped up from his place in the middle of the couch.

Stiles smiled to herself as she shuffled over to the trio of werewolves. "He's just worried." She explained simply with a lazy shrug.

Isaac nodded.

"So, did you manage to get a hold of creeper wolf?" Stiles asked, glancing between the sibling werewolves.

"Yeah." Derek said.

"He's back in San Francisco and now he's on he's way back here." Cora elaborated for the human girl, rolling her eyes at her big brother.

Stiles nodded. "What did he have to say about his old fuck buddy turning up out of the blue after all this time?" She asked, looking both genuinely curious and amused.

Cora smirked, also looking rather amused. "Well, I was ear-wigging," She mentioned, shooting her brother a sheepish grin when he glared at her. "And he didn't seem too happy about her arrival."

Stiles scoffed loudly. "Gee, you think that maybe she's more psychotic than he is and is threatened by that?" She asked with another amused smirk.

Derek had to smirk also at that. Though, he tried really hard not to.

Cora chuckled loudly at that, too.

"Okay, well, I'm gonna give Scott a call and see if Deaton's come up with anything." Stiles announced before pulling her cellphone back out. She placed her best friend's number on speed dial 6 and just like he always did, he answered to her on the second ring.

"Hey, Stiles."

"Hey, Scott. You still with Deaton?" Stiles asked.

"Yeah... Uh..."

"W-why do you sound like that? W-why do you sound like you've got something really bad to tell me?" Stiles hissed, her voice filled with uneasiness.

"Well..."

"Scott, just tell me, dude!" Stiles ordered her best friend.

Scott let out a little huff. "Okay, okay. And don't squeal like that! Sensitive ears here." He snapped, causing Stiles to smirk to herself in amusement. "Anyway, that lizard demon thing --"

"Dude, it was a fish demon." Stiles cut in.

"What? No -- it wasn't --"

"Dude, seriously, it looked more like a fish to me." Stiles insisted, getting distracted now.

Scott let out another huff. "Are you listening or not?"

Standing by the large window, Derek smirked to himself in amusement as he continued to listen in on the best friends' petty bickering. Even if they annoyed the crap out of him most of the time, there were still those moments when he would just quietly observe their interactions and just want to burst out with belly-rumbling laughter.

"I'm listening." Stiles confirmed, knowing her best friend could probably practically hear the grin in her voice.

"Okay, so Deaton doesn't know anything about the scabby demon, but he does know all about this Silver chick. He said that she joined the Hale pack through Peter just a few years before they all died in the fire -- and apparently, she was a really nice, kind-hearted person. She survived with Peter, obviously, but she disappeared about a week after and she hasn't returned... Until now, anyway."

"Well, do we know why the hell she's decided to turn into a complete psychopath?" Stiles asked curiously.

"No. But my guess is that after the fire she turned a little sour like Peter did."

Stiles scoffed loudly. "A little, Scott? Really, dude?"

Scott chuckled lightly. "Anyway, did you manage to get a hold of the creep?"

Stiles sighed tiredly. "Yeah. He's on his way, probably be here by tomorrow night. He didn't sound too happy according to Derek and Cora."

Scott chuckled again. "Well, that makes a pleasant change."

"I know, right? He's always such a smug shit." Stiles agreed, glaring at the wall in front of her as she thought of the annoying creeper wolf.

Again, Derek smirked to himself and this time he was unaware that his sister had noticed, then smirking smugly to herself as she stared between the nerdy teen and her big brother.

Scott chuckled once again. "Oh, crap! I gotta go. My mom's calling me."

"Yeah. No problem, dude. My dad's already given me an earful." Stiles mumbled, pouting to herself.

"Yeah. She probably wants me home." Scott sighed tiredly. "I'll call you in the morning."

"Alright. Night, dude." Stiles chirped.

"Night, Bilinski." Scott chirped back.

Stiles chuckled in amusement before finally hanging up and shoving her cellphone back into her hoodie pocket. "I'm guessing you all heard most of that." She stated rather than asked as she slowly shuffled back over to the trio of werewolves.

Derek simply nodded from his spot, still standing by the window.

"Yeah." Cora smiled innocently.

"Pretty much." Isaac nodded, shooting her a 'duh' look.

Stiles smiled to herself, clearly amused.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Infected!?"

"Just so you guys know -- I hate this plan!" Stiles yelled loudly as she pushed herself on, running across the wet grass as fast as she possibly could. She glanced over her shoulder briefly and her eyes widened when she realised how close the creature really was. "Fuuuck! You demons can't resist a run and stumble, can you!?" She yelled angrily, pushing herself even faster. "Scott! Derek! Isaac! Guys! Get out here and help me, you dicks!" She quickly hopped over the low metal fence and found herself in the park playground.

The creature hopped over after her with ease and landed just a few feet from her. It crouched low, letting out a low hiss as it glared over at her.

"N-now, Bo," Stiles began, her voice wavering as she tried to stand her ground for as long as she could. "Y-you don't wanna do this okay? I-I don't wanna have to get violent with you, okay!?" She snapped, forcing on a glare in return.

Bo let out another low hiss, edging slowly closer.

Stiles took a few large steps back in return.

"Hey, scabby!" Scott growled, appearing right beside the creature.

Bo growled back before back-handing the young Alpha, sending him flying a few meters away and landing hard on his back on the edge of the metal slide.

Isaac appeared from the other side of the creature, slashing it across the face with his razor-sharp claws.

Bo, however, seemed more angry than in pain. The creature glared at the young Beta before grabbing him by the throat with one hand and tossing him carelessly aside.

"Oh, shit!" Stiles yelped, her eyes widened to their fullest. She quickly reached into her pocket and pulled out the small switch-blade. "Stay back, bitch!" She snapped, trying to sound intimidating, but failing miserably.

Bo, however, didn't listen. Instead, the creature let out another low growl before leaping right at her.

Stiles squealed, trying to run, but the creature grabbed her by the back of the neck in pulled her back close to it's chest. "Oh, God, no... You're not gonna rape me, are you?"

The creature let out a low snarl at that, glaring down at her.

"Okay, okay. Good... I was just asking..." Stiles mumbled. "And you're gonna kill me... Great... My dad's gonna kill me..."

Bo's eyes snapped up at the sound of a loud and angry roar.

"What the fuck happened to you, sour wolf?" Stiles asked, eyeing his bloody and ripped shirt.

"Silver. Obviously." Derek growled, shooting her a brief glare before turning his blazing blue orbs back onto the creature.

The creature gave a low warning growl, slowly backing away a couple of steps with Stiles still in it's grasp. It then slowly lifted it's free hand and swiped it's fingers along the wounds along it cheek (caused by Isaac's claws). And then without warning, it swiped a single claw along Stiles' own cheek.

"Ow! Son of a bitch!" Stiles snapped, glaring up at the demon.

Derek let out a low snarl, edging closer. Though, he immediately halted again when the creature tightened it's grip around the teen's neck.

The creature then smeared it's bloody finger along Stiles' bloody cheek before finally letting her go altogether.

"What the hell?" Stiles mumbled, both confused and annoyed as she rubbed her stinging face lightly.

Derek looked almost as confused as Stiles as he stared at the demon.

The creature let out one last hiss before darting off and disappearing in a matter of seconds.

Derek and Stiles stared after the demon in confusion for a few moments.

"Stiles, you okay?" Derek asked, finally turning back to face her with his human face.

Stiles nodded absentmindedly before slowly turning back to face the werewolf. "Yep." She chirped, her cheek already feeling better, somehow.

Derek froze for a moment when he glanced down to her cheek. "It's gone."

"What?" Stiles asked, looking completely lost now.

"You're wound -- it's gone." Derek said, pointing to her face.

Stiles frowned slightly, her hands flying up to her cheek only to find... Nothing. "Holy crap..." She mumbled.

Derek frowned, looking more confused by the minute. "I think we should find out what the hell just happened."

Stiles nodded in agreement. "I like that plan... And next time," She added, slapping his shoulder as hard as she could. "Don't make me the bait!" She snapped, glaring up at him.

Derek glared back down at her for all of a couple of seconds before breaking out into a highly amused smirk.

"Y'know, one day, I'm gonna smack that smug shit smirk right off of your pretty little face." Stiles muttered pleasantly.

Derek's smirk simply widened. "You think my face is pretty?" He asked in a teasing tone.

"And little." Stiles added snootily.

"Ugh, get a room." Scott groaned, slowly shuffling over to them as he cracked his back.

Stiles glared over at her so-called best friend. "Go to Hell and die." She chimed innocently.

Scott simply rolled his eyes as he leaned down to shake Isaac awake...

"...So, the scabby demon got away?" Lydia asked with a look of dismay.

Stiles sighed and nodded while absentmindedly scratching at her cheek. "Yep. The plan was a total fail."

"And the plan was what, exactly?" Aiden asked as he pulled the metal fencing of the elevator closed and pressed the penthouse button.

"We were gonna try and capture the scabby demon and hold it hostage and wow, now that I say it out loud, it sounds crazy..." Stiles mumbled with a small frown.

"I don't like this whole no mouth thing it's got going on. It's really disquieting." Lydia noted, shivering as she made a disgusted face.

"Well, no mouth means no teeth." Stiles concluded with a happy smile.

"Unless it has them somewhere else..." Aiden muttered, wearing a small amused smirk.

Stiles' eyes widened in horror as the mere thought crossed her mind.

As the trio finally reached Derek's loft, Aiden pulled open the partition again, allowing the girls out first.

"Isn't he a gentleman?" Lydia chirped with a sweet grin.

Stiles rolled her eyes, smiling in amusement to herself as they entered the loft area where the rest of the gang were already waiting.

As usual, Derek was stood by the large window along the back wall. Peter was sat at the bottom of the metal, spiral staircase. Scott and Allison sat next to one another on the couch with Isaac an Cora perched on either side. And there was even Danny, who sat on the opposite couch beside Ethan.

"Finally." Derek grunted, glaring over at Stiles. "What took you so long?" He asked, arching an expectant brow.

Stiles glared back at him. "I had to stop and get some more gas -- which you still owe me 11 dollars for."

Derek simply rolled his eyes, but didn't bother to argue this time.

"Anyway, did you find out what Scabby did to me last night?" Stiles asked, glancing between Scott and back to Derek.

"Yeah. It's pretty riveting stuff." Cora stated, sarcasm laced in her voice.

Stiles shot her a playful glare before turning back to the other two male werewolves. "What'd we know?"

"The creature that infected you is a telepath demon." Peter piped up.

"Um, 'infected'?" Stiles asked, looking highly alarmed. "Infected!?"

"A telepath's blood, when mixed with their victim's blood, can transfer a part of the demon." Peter explained.

"A part of the demon? You mean like, a tail or horns or something?" Stiles asked, now looking relatively mortified.

Peter fought the urge to smile in amusement at the poor girl. "Well, not exactly."

"Then, what, exactly!?" Stiles snapped, now glaring angrily at him.

"Well, see, I'm not exactly sure. I've only ever read about it." Peter told her, shooting her a sheepish little grin instead.

"Oh, well, that's just great." Stiles muttered, scratching at her cheek again. "I guess that's why my face still feels so damn itchy." She grumbled to herself.

"Stiles," Scott slowly rose and stood beside his best friend. "We'll get through this. I'm not gonna let anything bad happen to you. I promise." He assured her with his usual dark and sincere orbs.

"Yeah, we've all got your back." Allison added, shooting the older girl a reassuring smile.

Stiles took a moment to calm herself down. She took a deep breath and simply nodded in response.

"Yeah, like you said; you gotta bunch of super-freak bad-asses protecting you 24/7." Cora piped up with a small grin.

Stiles had to chuckle at that. "I didn't say it quite like that." She mumbled, causing a few of them to chuckle.

"Y'know what -- my dad still has the Beastiary book back home." Allison stated, slowly rising from the couch. "I'll go check if this thing is in there and let my dad know what's going on. He might know something."

Stiles nodded and shot her a grateful smile. "Yeah. It's worth a shot. Thanks."

Allison nodded and smiled before walking off towards the elevator.

"I'll go with you." Scott piped up.

Stiles smirked. "Of course."

Scott shot her a playful glare. "Shut up." He grumbled before jogging lightly off after his girlfriend.

"Where are you going?" Stiles asked, spotting Derek pulling his black, leather jacket on.

"I'm gonna go find Silver. She knows what's going on." Derek stated through gritted teeth as he marched towards the elevator.

"Whoa! I don't think that's a good idea." Stiles exclaimed as she quickly jumped into his path, blocking him from going any further. Unless he went ahead and shoved her aside, like he usually did.

"I gotta say that I agree with Miss Stilinski." Peter piped up.

Derek shot his uncle a brief glare over his shoulder.

"Derek, Silver's an Alpha." Cora reminded, shooting his an 'are you crazy?' look.

"She won't kill me. She needs me for her stupid little plan." Derek reminded her, shooting her a 'duh' look in return.

Cora simply glared back up at her big brother.

"No, but she can kick your ass and probably will." Stiles stated, also glaring up at the older werewolf. "And then what? What good are you to the rest of your pack, huh?" She asked snootily.

Derek simply glared back down at her. 'So fucking stubborn.'

Stiles froze for a moment. She had heard him, but she hadn't seen his lips moving, only that special glare that he reserved only for her. "Wait a second..." She trailed off, trying to figure out what the hell had just happened.

Derek's glare slowly fell into one of confusion as he stared back down at the nerdy teen. "What?" He asked, looking completely lost now.

The others also stared between the two in utter confusion for a few moments.

"Say something else." Stiles ordered, her eyes wide with excitement.

Derek stared at her as if she had gone completely insane. "What?"

"No," Stiles groaned, shaking her head in dismay and shooting him a disapproving look.

Lydia: 'It's finally happened; she's actually cracked.'

Cora: 'What the fuck is going on?'

Isaac: 'Is she having a meltdown?'

Danny: 'What the hell?'

Peter: 'Well, this is odd. Even for Stiles.'

Aiden: 'This is kinda funny.'

Ethan: 'God, I am so fucking horny right now. Danny is gonna get it so bad when we finally get outta here. Alpha style. Heh...'

Stiles whirled around to face the rest of her friends. "Oh, my God! Okay, ew! Stop! Please just stop!" She squealed, holding her hands over her ears. However, it didn't help. If anything, their voices grew louder, all of them talking at once; thinking at once...

"Stiles, what is it? What's wrong?" Isaac asked, both his voice and expression filled with concern.

"Let's just say that I think I know what part of scabby demon got transferred over to me!" Stiles snapped.

"You can hear our thoughts?" Peter asked, being the first to catch on. Annoyingly, he was actually rather intelligent.

"No way!" Isaac chimed, chuckling loudly in amusement. "That is awesome."

"Oh, yeah. Real awesome." Stiles grumbled, glaring over at the curly-haired werewolf.

Danny: 'Holy crap! Okay, okay. Don't think of anything embarrassing.'

Lydia: 'Huh, it is kinda awesome.'

Ethan: 'Uh, Stiles, if you heard what I thought I before... And if you can hear me now... Tell no one...'

Peter: 'Can you hear me?'

"Shut up!" Stiles yelled, glaring angrily at them all. "You're giving me a damn migraine!"


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Freaky shit."

The next day, after school, the entire gang bundled back into their various vehicles and drove back to Derek's loft. When the teens arrived, Derek, Peter and Cora were already waiting for them.

The teens quickly found their seats, making themselves as comfortable as possible in the bare loft apartment. Lydia, Aiden, Ethan and Danny all took up the spaces of the first couch, while Scott and Allison took up the smaller couch. Isaac walked over to where Cora was perched with her legs dangling from the large wooden table in front of the window, where Derek stood in his usual spot. And once again, Peter had taken to squatting at the last few steps of the metal spiral staircase in the far left corner of the large room. And then there was Stiles, who was standing behind Scott and Allison's seats on the couch, trying to stay as politely far away as possible.

"So... You can read our minds?" Scott blurted out, being the first to speak into the rather awkward silence.

"Yep." Stiles chirped with a sheepish little grin.

"Our every impulse and fantasy?" Isaac asked, looking rather mortified, to say the very least.

The others shot the young werewolf an odd look before they, too, seemed to realise the truth behind his fears. All of their fears.

This time, Stiles shot him a wicked grin. "Every. Last. One." She taunted, her eyes widened for emphasis.

'Oh, God...' Isaac thought, looking just as worried as the others. Well, most of them, anyway.

'I don't see what any of this has to do with me.' Lydia thought before sighing in boredom and sharing her thoughts. "I don't see what any of this has to do with me."

Aiden smirked in amusement at his girlfriend. Whereas most of the others glared or rolled their eyes at the redhead.

"Well, I still think it's pretty cool." Scott admitted with a sheepish smile.

Stiles grinned and nodded. "Yeah, it's not so bad once you get used to it." She admitted. Though, she hadn't figured out how to shut it off and it was already hard for her to focus. At least she had her Adderall to back her up, even if she was currently taking a double dose since this fun little migraine began last night. "And did you see Nancy Doyle's face in English class today?" She added with a highly amused and somewhat wicked grin.

Scott chuckled, remembering all to well. "Yeah."

Allison chuckled, too, having been there when the nerdy teen upstaged the school's most intelligent and rather snooty female student. "She's super-competitive. You really showed that moose." She added with a bittersweet smirk.

Stiles snorted quietly, knowing all too well how most of the girls hated that Nancy bitch.

'She's hardly even human anymore... How can I be her friend if she doesn't need me?'

Stiles' eyes widened in shock for a moment before snapping back to the huntress. "No! No, no. I do. I do need you." She insisted, shooting her friend a desperate look.

Allison shot the older teen girl a watery look. "Sorry..." She mumbled.

Stiles shot her a reassuring smile. "It's fine. You can't help it, I know." She said, shooting the huntress an understanding look.

Allison simply smile gratefully in response. Though, she still looked rather guilty.

"Okay... What the hell are you talking about?" Lydia asked, looking completely lost now. Much like the others, who were staring, dumbfounded.

"Yeah. You guys are giving me the creeps right now." Aiden added, shivering slightly.

Stiles scoffed loudly. "Dude, you're a werewolf. Stop acting like a pussy."

"Oh, snap!" Ethan croaked over at his twin brother, chuckling quietly to himself.

Danny smirked, rolling his eyes at his boyfriend.

"Anyway," Peter piped up, gaining the teen's attention back. "I think there might just be some precedence for occurrences like this." He explained. "But I'm gonna need a couple of research buddies to find out for sure." He hinted with a small smirk.

"Well, don't look at me." Stiles said. "I can barely focus right now. You guys are so loud." She winced slightly.

Peter nodded, shooting her a look of understanding.

"Yeah, I'll help." Allison piped up.

"Uh, yeah, me, too." Scott nodded.

"Me, too." Isaac agreed.

"Us, too." Danny stated, referring to both him and Ethan, who simply nodded.

Stiles smiled gratefully at her friends. "Thanks, guys."

"As annoying as the fact is; you've saved most of ours lives at one point or another over the last 3 and a half years. So, we've got your back, Jack." Lydia stated with a sweet smile.

Stiles arched a brow. "Well... Thank you, Lydia... For that, um... Touching speech."

Peter smirked in amusement as he watched the teens before standing from the stairs and walking back up to fetch his laptop from his bedroom.

"I think I may actually know someone who could help us." Cora said as she slipped off of the table and back onto her feet. "I'll be back. Gotta go see a demon about a man." She added with a smirk before sauntering off towards the elevator.

Stiles chuckled lightly as she watched after the young she wolf for a few seconds. That was, until her best friend's thoughts grabbed a hold of her attention particularly. And who knew he was such a deep thinker?

'I am my thoughts... If they exist in her as well, then Stiles contains everything that's really me... And finally, she becomes me... And I cease to exist...' Scott frowned curiously to himself, still lost in his mindless internal ramblings. "Hmm." He hummed quietly, thoughtfully.

Stiles frowned, too, though, she looked more troubled at her best friend's true thoughts and feelings about the entire fucked up situation.

'Oh, God...' Ethan thought, sounding rather desperate and nervous. However, on the outside, he maintained his usual cool Alpha exterior. 'What the fuck am I gonna do!? I think about sex all the fucking time!'

Stiles slowly turned her attention over to the gay werewolf and smiled in amusement to herself.

'Shit! She's looking at me! She can here me!' Ethan's mind suddenly went crazy, scrambled as he tried to control them. "Sex! ...Help! ...4 times 5 is 20... 5 times 6 is 32... Or is it!? God, I don't even know anymore... Naked girls! Naked Stiles! Oh, gross! Naked Danny... God, yes, naked Danny... With his supple, ripped abs, his silky pecks, his big, hard... Oh, god! Stop me!'

Finally, Stiles cracked, unable to take anymore of the utter filth. "For crying out loud, Ethan!" She squealed, wrinkling her face in disgust. "Is that all you ever think about!?"

Danny glanced in confusion between the two, as did the others.

"Actually..." Ethan began, his voice snooty. He suddenly froze, glancing around at the others now staring at him curiously. "Bye!" He yelped before jumping up from the couch and darting straight for the elevator.

Stiles rolled her eyes, while the others still looked rather confused and also intrigued now.

Danny sighed and shook his head to himself before rising from the couch. "Sorry about him." He said. "Uh, as Ethan goes..."

"So goes your nation?" Stiles chimed, shooting him a knowing grin.

Danny chuckled and nodded before making his exit, following after his boyfriend.

Peter chuckled as he came walking back down the stairs with his open laptop in his arms. "Ethan just illustrated the first problem you're all gonna have while being around Stiles now. Or at least, until we fix her."

Stiles shot the creeper wolf a 'sour' look. "I'm not a broken toy... Dick." She muttered under her breath, of course, knowing he could hear her clearly enough.

Peter noticed, his smirk widening as he continued. "Chances are; at some point, you're all gonna be thinking whatever you least want Stiles to hear. But it's just a matter, of course, of mental discipline." He concluded rather smugly.

Derek sighed tiredly before finally joining the conversation. "As much as I hate to admit this; he's right." He said. "So..."

Stiles suddenly zoned out from the sour wolf's words and focussed on Peter's thoughts. 'Let's see how much control creeper wolf really has.' She thought smugly.

'Just look at Lydia... What!? No! Don't look at Lydia! She's a student! A kid! Oh, I am a bad, bad man... A very, bad, bad, bad man... And Stiles can still hear you... Shit balls!' Peter's eyes lifted to the nerdy teen's and then widened when he saw her smirking widely over at him. "I think I've got some more, uh, books upstairs... Excuse me..." He muttered, not bothering for anyone to reply as he quickly made his way back up to his bedroom.

Stiles chuckled quietly to herself, earning a few odd looks from her friends.

Allison smiled knowingly between the two. "What's it like, Stiles?" She asked with keen interest.

Stiles smiled sheepishly. "I don't know, really. It's a little weird, I guess." She admitted with a slight shrug. "But look, please don't think for a second that I don't need you. Any of you. I mean, I can share this with all of you. It's like all these doors are opening to all of these little worlds and I can just walk right in." She explained with a small, but excited grin.

"Y'know, this mind-reading thing might be useful for us." Aiden piped up, glancing over to Derek.

Derek nodded.

"What'd you mean?" Isaac asked, glancing curiously between the two.

"Our situation with Silver." Derek explained simply.

"You want me to get into her mind?" Stiles asked, though it sounded more like a statement.

"Silver or any other enemies we might make in the future." Derek explained. "Y'know, if it lasts that long." He added with a shrug. "It could be useful. Stiles would be able to anticipate their moves before they even make them."

Stiles scoffed. "Well, yeah. But I was thinking of something way better than that."

Derek shot her a 'oh, really?' look. "Such as?" He asked, clearly humouring her.

"Such a catching up on school work..." Stiles mumbled with an innocent expression.

Isaac snorted in amusement. "By cheating."

"Duh." Stiles replied.

Derek rolled his eyes, but couldn't help smirking a little.

'And no one else exists, either... Stiles as all of us...'

As the group continued to talk, Stiles found herself zoning out and focussing on her best friend's rather loud thoughts once again.

'We think...' Scott thought with another small frown. 'Therefore, she is... Huh. Freaky shit...'

This time, Allison seemed to notice. 'She knows so much already and it's only been one day. She knows what Scott's thinking. I never know what Scott's thinking. Before I even realise, she'll know him better than I do. And she already knows him better than I do anyway.'

Stiles frowned, her eyes snapping over to the pretty brunette. "No. Don't think that." She pleaded with a rather strained look.

Allison quickly snapped out of her thoughts. "I can't help it, Stiles. I'm... I'm sorry... I just can't." She mumbled. She shot the older teen a rather sheepish apologetic smile before rising from the couch and dashing towards the elevator.

Stiles stared after her friend sadly.

Scott frowned in confusion, glancing after his girlfriend and then over at his best friend. "Uh, if you don't need me right now, I'm gonna follow the brunette. If that's cool?" He asked, shooting her a rather wary look -- as if he didn't want to upset her.

Stiles sighed tiredly, but nodded. "Yeah, it's cool." She agreed. "Tell her that I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snoop."

Scott chuckled lightly, mostly trying to lighten his best friend's mood. "It's okay. It's not your fault, dude." Slowly, he rose from the couch and over to her, pulling her into a tight bear hug.

"Scott," Stiles wheezed, patting him lightly on the back. "Not that I don't love you, but... Can't... Breath... Wolf strength..."

Scott's eyes widened and he instantly let her go. "Sorry." He mumbled with a sheepish little grin.

Stiles shot him a goofy grin in return, punching him chest playfully. "Night, dude."

Scott grinned. "Night, Bilinski." He said before shuffling towards the elevator.

"That was one time, dude! One time!" Stiles snapped, glaring after him. She then turned back to the others and let out another tired sigh. "Well, guess I won't be writing that book on how to gain new friends with telepathy." She muttered, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Ah, don't be like that." Isaac whined, pouting slightly.

Stiles rolled her eyes, but couldn't help smiling a little. Isaac always knew how to cheer her up. He was like the little brother she'd never had. Besides Scott, of course.

'Whatever. I wonder when I can go.' Lydia thought before voicing her very thoughts once more. "Whatever. Can I go now? Aiden and I have a date." She added that last part, smirking wickedly over at her boyfriend, who grinned back excitedly.

"Gee. Really feeling the love tonight." Stiles muttered, flopping down onto one of the vacant couch.

"I need coffee." Derek muttered, rubbing a hand over his tired and unshaven face.

"Uh, Stiles?" Peter called, standing at the top of the stairs. "Can you hear my thoughts from up here?" He asked rather timidly. Very unlike Peter. "I could, uh, I could go out into the hall --"

"No. It's fine." Stiles huffed, rising back up from the couch. "The rest of you can stay. Don't worry. I'm gonna go home. I got a headache." She muttered as she marched towards the elevator.

Derek stared after her, a small, but troubled frown set on his face.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "This time tomorrow, I'll kill you all."

The next day at lunchtime, Stiles had managed to avoid most of her friends, for the sake of her own sanity, as well as theirs. However, as she walked down the crowded school hallways, it wasn't her friends that she needed to worry about anymore.

'Lydia Martin is seriously hott. Why the heck is she going out with that Aiden asshole!? From one asshole to another. Speaking of assholes -- I wonder what really happened to Jackson...'

'I hate my body so much... Especially my flabby arms. Ugh!'

'It's no use. No one will ever love me...'

'I can't believe the stupid test is today!'

'My gosh, he has the cutest ass ever!'

'These stupid contacts are killing me.'

'I wonder if there's jello for desert today...'

Stiles had to pause for a moment when she felt rather light-headed. Though, it didn't seem to make anything better for her in even the slightest. She glanced around at all of the other students, either at their lockers, walking up and down the hallway or standing in small groups, chatting.

'Ugh, I hate her.'

Stiles glanced to the side of her to find Nancy Doyle standing in front of her open locker and glaring rather bitterly right at Stiles. Stiles simply rolled her eyes at the older girl before forcing herself to walk on again.

'Upstage me. Pff... Bitch...'

Stiles gritted her teeth, her eyes narrowing. But somehow, she forced herself to continue down the crowded hallway without turning back once...

...Meanwhile, across town, Derek, Peter and Cora were stationed back up in Derek's loft. Derek was on his knees in front of the coffee table, books strewn all over the place. Peter was in very much the same situation over at the table by the large window, his face buried in his laptop also. And then there was the youngest Hale; Cora, who was pacing slowly back and forth in front of the window while speaking (and occasionally listening) into her cellphone.

"I don't care if telepath demons scare him!" Cora snapped into her cellphone with an angry glare. "I don't care if telepath demons turned him into fricking sock puppets! Just make sure he calls me back or we're gonna have a seriously fucking problem." She snarled before hanging up with a loud a frustrated huff.

Derek glanced over his shoulder and back to his baby sister. "Problem?" He mused, arching a brow at her.

Cora smirked bitterly to herself. "No... Not yet, anyway." She added that last part with a bored roll of her eyes. "So, anything yet?" She asked him back, arching her own brow in expectants.

Derek sighed tiredly. "No... Not yet, anyway." He repeated, shooting her a small smirk.

"Holy crap on a cracker. I actually think I found something." Peter piped up.

The siblings glanced at one another before both shuffling over to their uncle's side.

"It's happened before, quite recently, too." Peter said, reading from his laptop screen. "To a man in Ecuador."

"Is there any way we could contact him?" Derek asked.

Peter frowned. "I'd say; not. He can't communicate with anyone."

"Dead?" Cora asked, glancing warily at her uncle.

"No..." Peter shook his head, looking slightly worried now. "He's in complete isolation, because he can't shut the power off."

The three werewolves glanced at one another, each wearing a slightly dreaded look on their faces...

...She didn't know how exactly, but somehow Stiles had finally made it to the lunch hall. She shuffled over to the cafeteria and pulled up a tray before standing in the line. She glanced around, vaguely seeing that the loser Greenburg grabbing his own tray and standing in line behind her as the cacophony of thoughts continued to flood her mind. And there were far too many voices to distinguish between who was who. Hell, she didn't even know half the students of the school. Sure, she'd seen them around over the years, but still.

'It has to get better after high school. Please, God, I hope it does.'

'I'm so fucking horny right now... Damn.'

'I wonder how many potato chips I can fit in my mouth.'

'I hate my dad.'

'Am I even normal?'

"Hey, Stiles... Hello...?"

Stiles finally managed to snap out of it at the sound of a familiar voice. She glanced back behind her where the voice had come from to see Greenburg staring curiously back at her. "What?" She mumbled, still looking rather distracted.

"Are you done with the mashed potatoes?" He asked her, glancing between her and her tray. 'She doesn't even know I'm here...'

Stiles frowned slightly before shuffling away out of the line with her half-filled tray of food in her loose grasp. As she wandered around the lunch hall, trying to find a seat, the voices began to build up once again, to the point where she could no longer hear her own thoughts anymore. It was too much. Too, too much.

'Come on already! I'm fucking starving!'

'Stilinski is such a loser.'

'Greenburg smells like shit. Ugh. Has he never heard of bathing?'

'God, Cindy has the sweetest face I've ever seen.'

'If I stand in the right position, I could probably see into the arm of her shirt...'

'This time tomorrow, I'll kill you all!'

Stiles froze, her entire body ridged, causing her tray to slip from her loose grasp and splat onto the floor at her feet.

The entire cafeteria went silent for a few brief moments, all of the other students staring at her in amusement or shock. The crowds of students then erupted in laughter before applauding her before then finally going back to what they were doing.

And then before Stiles could stop herself, she began to frantically search for that bitter and threatening voice. She swirled around, grabbing the first girl and staring at her before going on to the next student. And then the next and then the next, until she found herself going around in dizzying circles. She was trying to find who that voice could possibly belong to, but it was getting her nowhere.

'Whoa, Stilinski's gone nuts... Well, even more so than she already is.'

'I hate being here.'

'Why is my hair always so limp? It's not fair.'

'I wish I was dead.'

'I'm completely in love with him. And he doesn't even know.'

Stiles continued to grab a hold of the other students, any that passed her. She reached Greenburg and frowned slightly at his thoughts before moving on to the next person.

'She touched me...' Greenburg's thoughts whispered, his face clearly stunned as she left him behind.

'I need a cigarette.'

'I need a coffee.'

'My feet hurt.'

'I hate being here.'

'I love him so much.'

'I wish I was dead.'

'I hate my parents.'

The thoughts continued to pile on, one after the other and in the end Stiles couldn't take it anymore. She froze up again, in the middle of the cafeteria, the dizziness and the loudness becoming too much for her mind.

'What time is it?'

'Why am I even here?'

'This food tastes like shit.'

'I hate Tuesdays.'

She knew it would be no help, but Stiles covered her ears with her hands, her eyes screwing tightly shut. She tried her hardest to close them all out, if only just for a second, but it was no use at all. In the next moment, the dizziness increased and the last thing she remembered was passing out, her body sinking limply to the floor...

...Stiles let out a groggy little groan as she slowly cracked open her eyes. Feeling the soft grass beneath her back, tickling her neck and head, she glanced up to see her friends all crowded around her, staring down at her. And she'd barely had time to register them all before she was once again, bombarded with all of their thoughts.

'Damn... I thought I lost her for a second there.' Scott thought, looking as though he was about to have a nervous breakdown.

'Thank God! She's waking up.' Allison thought, breathing a sigh of relief aloud.

'Wow, she doesn't look so good right now.' Aiden thought. He and Stiles weren't the closest of friends or anything, but as part of the pack, even he looked slightly concerned.

'Thank fuck she's okay...' Isaac thought.

'I wonder what happened to make her pass out like that.' Danny thought, looking both confused and concerned at the same time.

'She looks half dead. Poor girl.' Ethan thought, looking as concerned as the others.

'Okay, good, she's okay... I'm cold. Ugh, should have grabbed my cute new sweater.' Lydia thought with a slight frown.

Stiles blinked a few times and when her vision finally cleared, she glanced up at each of her friends. Finally, she noticed that who else was there with them. "Derek? What're you doing here? Are we still at school?" She frowned, looking slightly confused as he hovered over her head, his own face upside down in her current lying position.

Derek finally let out the breath he wasn't even aware he'd been holding. "Yeah, you're still at school. Scott called me to come take you home." He explained.

Stiles simply nodded before slowly pulling herself up into a sitting position.

"Shit, Stiles." Scott breathed. "You scared the hell outta me."

"Sorry." Stiles muttered, wearing a sheepish little smile.

"Are you okay?" Derek asked, eyeing her cautiously.

Stiles simply nodded.

"I told them not to move you." Lydia piped up, glaring at the boys. "They probably broke something."

Stiles chuckled lightly. "No. I'm okay." She confirmed before slowly lifting herself up from the grass.

Instantly, Derek and Scott were either side of her, helping her back up onto her wobbly feet.

Stiles shot both the werewolves a small, but grateful smile. "Really. I'm okay." She insisted, slowly pulling her arms out of their grasps. Her eyes then widened when she suddenly remembered what happened back in the cafeteria before she had passed out. "Wait! No, I'm not okay!" She snapped.

The others glanced between one another, then staring back at her in confusion.

Stiles took a deep breath to calm herself down before explaining properly. "There's a killer in the cafeteria. Or at least, someone who's going to be a killer by this time tomorrow."

"See!" Isaac exclaimed. "I've been saying for years that the lunch lady is gonna do us all in with that greasy Mulligan Stew." He said, quivering dramatically in disgust.

Allison glared at him, while the others simply stared blankly at him.

"I mean; what the hell's Mulligan?" Isaac mumbled, blushing lightly as he put his head down, avoiding their gazes entirely.

Stiles shook her head before continuing. "Someone was thinking about it. They thought, 'This time tomorrow, I'll kill you all.'" She explained. "We have to find them." She added, glancing between the others.

"Did you recognise the voice?" Derek asked, still eyeing her intently.

Stiles let out a defeated huff, shaking her head. "No. Unfortunately not." She grumbled.

"Boy or girl?" Danny asked curiously.

"I don't know." Stiles frowned slightly, trying to remember what the voice sounded like. "It was hardly even human... It was so full of anger and hate." She whispered.

"Well, I mean, who hasn't idly thought about taking the entire place out with a bunch of explosives?" Aiden piped up casually. He glanced around, noticing the group was silent and staring at him now. "I said, 'idly'." He pointed out sheepishly.

Lydia rolled her eyes, but couldn't help smirking in amusement.

Stiles shook her head. "No. I know the difference. Whoever it was, they meant it. They're gonna do it."

Scott frowned slightly. 'She looks real tired.'

'Who the hell is this person!?' Allison thought, looking mortified.

'I'm still cold.' Lydia thought boredly.

'Pff. I bet it was someone like Greenburg. The creep.' Danny thought, sounding rather disgusted.

"Shut up!" Stiles yelped, screwing her eyes shut.

Derek reached out to steady her swaying form, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Shit..." Stiles breathed, slowly opening her eyes to face them again. "I'm sorry, guys... It's just... Could you maybe not think so loud?" She pleaded. "Or so fricking much..." She mumbled under her breath.

"I think maybe you should just go home for today and rest your head." Allison piped up, shooting her friend another concerned look.

Stiles nodded limply. "Yeah, maybe."

"It's okay, Stiles." Scott said. "We'll find out who it is. Don't worry."

"Ugh. I'll start by making a list of everyone in the cafeteria." Lydia said. "Anything to keep me from freezing my nipples off." She mumbled under her breath before sauntering back towards the school building.

Aiden chuckled. "We'll let you know how that goes." He stated before jogging off to catch up with his girlfriend.

"Come on, let's go do our own investing." Allison said, walking off after the couple.

"I'll call you tonight." Scott told him best friend before following after his girlfriend.

"Come on, let's get you home." Derek mumbled, slowly ushering her across the grass as the others clambered back to their classes.

"Derek, am I gonna be okay?" Stiles asked, glancing up at him as she hobbled along.

Derek gulped silently before forcing a small, but reassuring smile. He noticed the fear lingering in her big brown eyes and as much as he hated lying to her, he just couldn't tell her the truth. "I promise."

Stiles didn't believe him. Not for one second. But somehow, hearing those two words come out of his mouth seemed to give her a sort of comfort. For now, anyway.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "TWICE!?"

With Stiles still feeling dizzy and rather disorientated, she had tossed the keys to her precious Jeep over to Derek without any argument. Derek was slightly surprised by this, but then again, he was going to be driving, one way or another. There was just no way he was letting her drive in her current state. He didn't want to die from her reckless driving -- is what he told himself. But he knew it was also because he cared. He cared if she lived or died. It was just that sometimes, when she was being especially difficult or talkative, he just didn't know which he wanted.

"Yeah." Stiles said into her cellphone. "Nancy was there, too. And she's kinda creepy. Like scary-creepy."

"Tell me about it. That bitch kicked me in the nuts last year. JUST for standing too close to her stupid locker... Whore."

Stiles chuckled in amusement. "Suck it up, McCall. You're a fricking werewolf. I'm sure it didn't hurt as much as it used to."

Scott scoffed loudly. "First of all; how many times do you think I've been kicked in the nuts? It's not like, a regular occurrence for me, y'know. And second of all; it STILL hurts, okay!? The balls are sacred -- whether you're human or otherwise."

"And you still heal quickly. So stop bitching, Lassie." Stiles pointed out snootily.

Derek eyes flickered over to her for a second, his lips slightly tugging into an amused grin as he listened in on both sides of their conversation. Even if the dog jokes were way over-used towards his kind, for some reason, he still found it funny whenever she would crack one.

"You're not being very sympathetic. My balls need sympathy here." Scott whined. "Best friends are supposed to take the same side."

"Ugh. Enough about your hairy, werewolf nuts." Stiles drawled, wrinkling her face in disgust as she glared out of the passenger's window. "Besides, that's what you've got Allison for." She added, unable to help smiling to herself again.

"I'm gonna tell her you said that." Scott retorted with a smug laugh.

"And I wouldn't think any less of you." Stiles stated, clearly humouring him.  
"Anyway, back to more pressing matters..."

"Right. We went back to the cafeteria, took a list of everyone there. And right now we're in the library, checking the school computer student database." Scott explained.

"Cool. Oh, and all of the teachers, too. Mr, Beech thought something about getting rid of all the students. I mean, he's a little weirdo, but it's worth checking out. Oh, and don't tell my dad anything about this yet. Not until we know who it is, at least." Stiles told him.

"Sure. No problem. I'll call you if anything comes up." Scott replied.

"Sweet. We'll hang like a couple of testicles, real soon, dude." Stiles chirped back, ending the call as Scott laughed.

"Nice." Derek mumbled, smiling ever-so slightly.

Stiles chuckled. "I'm a nice person." She replied with a lazy shrug. "Ugh..." She mumbled, feeling the dizziness overwhelm her slightly once again. She leaned back in her seat, taking a deep breath and closing her eyes for a few moments.

Derek eyed her carefully for a couple of seconds before turning his attention back to the road. "Do you need me to open a window?" He asked, his voice abnormally gentle.

Stiles went to shake her head in response, but then felt better of it. "No. Thanks." She breathed, taking slow and deep breaths. "I can't shut it out, Derek. It's like this overwhelming invasion inside of my head. Like there's these strangers just walking around in there."

"It's gonna be okay." Derek said, but even he didn't believe that right now.

Stiles scoffed quietly. "It's only been 2 days and I can't even be around people anymore. I can't be around my friends anymore, because they're too embarrassed to look me in the eye. I mean, not that there was a whole mass of people cueing up to be my friend in the first place, but still..."

"Look, I know this is hard and I'm sorry. But Peter and I are looking for a way to help you." Derek explained, looking at her from the corner of his eye.

Stiles stared at him for a few moments. "Why can't hear I you?" She asked, shooting him a slightly curious look.

"What?" Derek asked, slightly lost now.

"I can't hear you're thoughts anymore..." Stiles told him, now frowning in confusion.

Derek let out a tired sigh before answering. "It's just like Peter explained; I can control myself."

Stiles shot him another curious look. "For me or because you don't want me to know what you're thinking?" She asked, knowing it was the latter anyway.

"Both." Derek mumbled, staring straight ahead as he gripped the steering wheel slightly.

Stiles frowned at that, looking slightly taken aback by that. She glanced to his hands, his knuckles turning white as he gripped the wheel. "Will I be okay, Derek?" She asked, deciding to change the subject for both of their sakes and she would never know how grateful Derek was for that. "I mean, if we find a way to make me normal again?" She added, now shooting him a hopeful look.

"Stiles," Derek shot her a brief, but meaningful look before turning his attention back to the road ahead. "I'm gonna fix this. I promise..."

...Meanwhile, back in the school library, most of the others were gathered around the computers. And thankfully, the library was always rather vacant. Lydia, Aiden, Ethan and Danny had taken up the computers along the bench beside Scott and Allison, while Isaac was snooping around in the absent librarian's office files.

"Do we have everyone down in the cafeteria?" Allison asked, glancing to the redhead simply because she could be trusted the most. The boys were a little less subtle at the best of times, but at least their hearts were in the right place.

"Yep. All down." Lydia chimed. "You can help me match the list against the FBI mass-murder profiles. See if we can rule anyone out. Or pick anyone out." She stated casually as she typed away at her computer keyboard.

"You're gonna hack into the FBI database?" Danny asked, shooting her a challenging and rather disbelieving look.

Lydia smirked smugly. "You're not the only one with wicked hacking skills." She chirped, shooting him a sweet smile.

Danny simply smirked, shaking his head in amusement.

"Okay, I'm still just kinda having trouble with the fact that one of us if just gonna go gun everybody down." Scott said, looking slightly troubled.

Lydia scoffed loudly. "Yeah. Because that never happens in American high schools." She stated sarcastically.

"She's kinda not wrong." Ethan said, wearing a sheepish smile.

"Yeah," Aiden piped up, looking a lot more amused than his twin. "It's kinda bordering on a trend these days." He joked, causing the others, minus Lydia, to glare at him. He simply rolled his eyes in return.

Allison sighed. "Besides which, Beacon Hills High, beacon for the supernatural and evil and all that... Let's get to work, people." She said, turning back to her own computer.

"We have until lunchtime tomorrow, right?" Danny asked, looking slightly concerned.

Scott nodded. "We hope..."

...Like the rare gentleman that he actually was, Derek walked Stiles into her house, where the Sheriff was already waiting for her. Derek had explained what was happening to Stiles and what had happened at school today. The Sheriff had taken a few moments to process the ever-strange information before thanking Derek as he left. Stiles had offered to let him borrow her Jeep, if he promised to take good care of it. And with that, Derek had smirked and told her there was no need.

And now, here Stiles was, up in her bedroom, the windows and doors closed, cutting her off from the rest of the world and their deafening thoughts. And it seemed like it was working, for a while anyway...

"There," John placed a few more blankets over his daughter, tucking her into her bed. "You look better already." He added with a slightly nervous smile.

"Thanks, dad." Stiles croaked, flashing him a small, but grateful smile.

"I, uh, I'm just gonna go get ya another pillow." John mumbled, shooting her another nervous smile before shuffling quickly out of the room.

Stiles stared curiously after him, finally noticing her father's odd behaviour. "Dad, I'm fine. I really don't need one." She called after him.

John walked back into the room a few moments later and tucked the pillow under her head. "But you need another blanket." He said, shooting her yet another nervous smile before shuffling back out of the room.

Stiles glared after him, finding his strange behaviour annoying now. She just wanted to sit in peace with her father by her side to comfort her.

John reappeared with another blanket, quickly throwing it over her before tucking it in around her.

"Dad, please, just come sit with me." Stiles begged, shooting him a pleading look.

John looked rather torn. "I, uh, I have some laundry to do." He mumbled, slowly hobbling back towards the door.

"Dad, why are you..." Stiles trailed off, finally realising the problem and like an automatic switch she couldn't control, she suddenly realised why he was so adamant to be around her. "You had sex with Melissa!?" She yelped, bolting up right, her eyes wide.

John gasped, his own eyes widening, though, he looked mortified, if anything.

"YOU HAD SEX WITH MELISSA!?" Stiles squealed, more shocked than anything else.

"Stiles," John stammered. "I -- it was after your mother passed... We we're drunk and -- it was just once, I swear!" He stuttered, looking guilty as he rushed back out of the room.

"Oh my God! On top of a Police car!?" Stiles shrieked after him. "TWICE!?"


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I was just wondering if you were planning on killing a bunch of people tomorrow?"

"Okay, children, line up." Lydia chimed, clapping her hands to gain their attention.

Scott, Allison, Isaac, Aiden, Ethan and Danny all stood up from their computer desks and sauntered lazily over. They stood in a line, all facing the ever-bossy redhead and waited patiently.

At the sound of the photocopier beeping loudly, Lydia quickly rushed back into the librarian's office. She retrieved the copies and then rushed back out to the others as she sorted through them. "Okay, I've taken our list and narrowed it down to just over a dozen rather strong suspects." She explained. "And here are your personalised assignments." She stepped to the line of her friends and quickly began giving out the fresh sheets of paper.

"Y'know, I was kinda hoping there'd be assignments." Danny stated sarcastically.

Lydia shot him a brief glare when she finally handed him his set of papers.

"Does the winner get a reward?" Aiden asked, wearing a suggest smirk.

Lydia rolled her eyes, but couldn't help smiling to herself.

"You have no shame." Ethan said, chuckling at his brother.

"Alright, shut up. This is important." Lydia ordered.

"Wait a sec' -- since when are you and Stiles best friends?" Scott asked, eyeing the redhead suspiciously.

Lydia shot him a rather offended look. "We're not 'best friends', but that doesn't mean I wanna see her go insane... Well, any more insane than she already is. I'm not that mean, Scott. Besides, we're all still a part of the same dysfunctional pack, whether I like it or not."

Scott simply rolled his eyes. He knew she was right anyway. And now was no time to be arguing. Especially not with his best friend slowly going insane and not with this lunatic student killer still on the loose.

"Anyway," Lydia continued like she hadn't been interrupted. "Talk to everyone on your lists. Use the sample questions I've written if you don't know what you're doing." She explained slowly and clearly, knowing that most of the boys were easily distracted and rather dim sometimes. At least she could trust Allison, however.

The others nodded in reply, all glancing over their sheets for a few moments.

Lydia eyed them carefully for a few seconds before letting out a frustrated huff. "Today, children!" She barked impatiently, now glaring at them.

The boys jumped slightly at the sudden high-pitched shriek from the redhead, while Allison chuckled at them in amusement. Even Danny jumped a little before glaring at the redhead. The huntress then slowly headed towards the library double-door exit, the boys then slowly following behind her.

"Oh, and write neatly or I will cut your fingers off!" Lydia called after them. "Oh, and label all of your worksheets!"

Aiden chuckled, being the last one out of the door. "You got it, baby..."

...Still in the library by second period, Lydia smirked as she slowly circled his chair. "Fantasy's are fun. Aren't they, Greenburg?" She purred, eyeing him carefully as she stopped to stand in front of him.

Greenburg stared up at the odd, but beautiful redhead. He looked slightly intimidated and very confused, to say the very least. "Uh... I guess..." He mumbled, not really knowing what else to say. He didn't know what this was all about, besides what she'd told him. And he was starting to think that this was something more than just for the stupid High School Yearbook.

Lydia nodded. "We all have fantasies that we're powerful, more respected... Where people pay attention to us."

Greenburg frowned. 'What would you know? Everyone loves you.' -- is what he wanted to say, but instead he mumbled; "Uh... Yeah?"

"But sometimes the fantasy isn't enough..." Lydia slowly leaned down, resting a hand on the back of his chair as she stared him directly in the eyes. "Is it, Greenburg?" She purred before slowly leaning back up and standing in front of him again. "Sometimes we have to make it so that people don't ignore us. Make them pay attention... You know what I'm talking about. Don't you, Greenburg?"

Greenburg continued to stare up at her, looking beyond lost at this point. "Uh... You... Want me to... Pay attention?" He asked sheepishly. He hoped that was the right answer, because he didn't know what the fuck was going on.

Lydia let out a frustrated little huff, looking rather flustered at his useless answers. Obviously, this idiot wasn't the killer. He was just an idiot. Like she'd always thought he was. But at least she could cross another name off of her list of suspects. That was something, at least...

...After another half hour, Scott was still on the basketball court with his own list in hand. He'd gotten throw 3 suspects, but nothing had turned up yet. And now he was currently interviewing his fourth suspect; Doug Hogan, the school's star basketball player, who also already had a criminal record for stealing cars.

Hogan bounced the basketball a couple more times before tossing it up and sinking it expertly though the net above. "So, this is for the Yearbook?" He asked, only half paying attention.

"Yeah." Scott nodded, getting his pen ready. "Personality profile. It's new." He lied, impressed by how quickly and easily he could. He was getting better at that.

"Okay, cool." Hogan nodded, holding the ball to his abdomen as he faced the younger teen. "What was the question again?" He asked, staring curiously down at the shorter male.

Scott glanced down to his paper and read the question out again. "Do you ever feel that you've created a false persona for yourself? And if so; how much of a strain does it put on you to maintain?"

"Uh, wow..." Hogan looked slightly caught off guard by the question. He then took a moment to contemplate before answering. "I mean... Yeah. Moderate strain, I guess." He nodded.

Scott nodded back before writing down his answer.

"Is that a good answer?" Hogan asked, glancing hopefully between Scott and the papers in his hands.

Scott glanced up at him and smiled slightly in amusement. "Yeah. Yeah, it's a good answer. Don't worry..."

...Meanwhile, Aiden had been sauntering around, using a much less subtle approach to his list of suspects. Though, thankfully, most people were too afraid of him to question him.

Aiden waited for the other students to flock out of the classroom before approaching his teacher. "Hey, Mr. Beech!" He chimed, shooting the teacher a charming smile.

"Oh, hello, Aiden." Mr. Beech shot his student a small smile back before going back to clearing his desk.

"Mr. Beech, quick question for the Yearbook?" Aiden asked sweetly. "I'm helping out this year." He elaborated.

Mr. Beech nodded. "Of course. Go ahead."

Aiden smiled brightly. "Great. Uh, I was just wondering if you were planning on killing a bunch of people tomorrow?" He chirped casually, wearing a curious look.

This time, Mr. Beech simply stared at his student in bewilderment...

...And while the others were being a bit more subtle; Isaac was getting rather distracted by his next few suspects.

"Okay, ladies," Isaac began, smiling widely as the 4 stunning blondes gathered around him. If only he'd know how popular the responsibility of the Yearbook made him a few years ago. He shook his head in amusement at that thought. "So, turn-offs include smoking, insensitive men and burkenstocks." He said, reading from his previous answers. "Did I get all of that right?"

The girls all nodded, each of them flashing him their own flirtatious smiles.

Isaac's smile widened into a broad grin. "Okay, excellent." He purred. He wiggled his eyebrows at the girls, making each of them giggle back. "Now -- your ideas of a perfect evening..." He trailed off, shooting them a suggestive look. "Katie," He said, turning to the tallest with another wide grin. "Let's start with you, gorgeous."


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Negative thinking doesn't solve a problem, Derek."

Stiles didn't know what time it was, but when she'd woken up from her nap and glanced over to her window, it was already dark outside. She'd been sleeping through the whole day, in and out of consciousness, but now the voices were so loud that they'd literally thrown her awake. It seemed that the range of this strange demon power had grown considerably once again in just a matter of a few hours.

'I should have just quit when I had the chance. No job is worth this...'

'Pff! Look at him... Just smiling away like nothing's wrong. Like he thinks that I don't know about that whore...'

'I can't believe we're going to have a baby! God, I love her so fucking much!'

'Ha! I can't believe I'm getting away with this...'

'Just one more drink...'

'I should just leave and never look back. The kids wouldn't miss me. She wouldn't even notice, anyway...'

Stiles stood at her open window, just gazing vacantly out to the other dimly lit windows in the houses surrounding her own. She couldn't hear anything else anymore, just the endless voices of pain, anguish, hurt, disappointment mixed with the rare happiness, pride, comfort and elation. Things she no longer felt at this point. And she was sure her head was pounding violently, but she could barely feel even that.

'I hate my body...'

'I wish I was rich...'

'I wanna go to Mexico. Why does he always get to chose!?'

'I love him...'

'How can I make this right?'

'I wish I was dead...'

'I can't believe I won...'

'I'm gonna marry this girl one day...'

'I can't even stand to look at him anymore...'

'I really need a shit...'

Stiles crinkled her face in disgust and quickly reached out for the window, finally sliding it closed. She sighed tiredly, wrapping her fluffy blue robe snugly around her. She shuffled lazily back over to her bed, the voices inside her head following her every step of the way. She laid down on her bed, pulling the blankets up over her head and screwed her eyes shut once again...

...Meanwhile, back at the loft, Derek, Peter and Cora were doing some late night research. They'd already found out what to do, how to cure Stiles of her new and unwanted ability. And now all they had to do was collect the main 'ingredient.'

"How's it going?" Derek asked. He glanced up from the papers splayed out on the table and over to his uncle.

"We're good for now." Peter replied as he continued to mix the small bowl of herbs.

"Oh, yeah, we're real good." Derek snapped, glaring back at the older werewolf. "Stiles is slowly being driven mad as we speak, we have no real proof that this is even going to work, for it to actually work, we need the heart of the telepath demon and not on top of that, we've got a student killer running around the school."

Cora and Peter shared a brief look. "Feel better now?" She chirped, shooting her big brother a small smile for comfort. She knew that Derek cared about Stiles, more than he was ever willing to admit. And while she found it kind of cute sometimes, it also frustrated the hell out of her at times. However, she knew her brother well enough to leave it alone. He was just so stubborn. Much like Stiles, as well.

Derek let out an exasperated huff before glaring back down at the papers sprawled out in front of him.

Cora simply smirked to herself.

Peter rolled his eyes. "Negative thinking doesn't solve a problem, Derek." He tsked.

Derek snapped his glare back over to his uncle.

Peter simply smirked this time. "Now, who is going to fetch the demon heart?"

...Peter found himself flying through the air, landing flat on his ass, but unfortunately, not without smacking his head against the metal slide. He let out a loud groan, trying to shake of the throbbing in the side of his head as he stumbled back to his feet.

Bo hissed over at him before swirling around to face the other werewolf.

Eyes burning blue, teeth bared and claws at the ready, Derek let out a loud battle cry roar before lunging at the demon. He managed to rip his claws through the creature's abdomen and left shoulder before grabbing it's throat and tossing it effortlessly into the air.

Bo went flying across the park playground, landing on one of the picnic tables and smashing it to pieces in the process. It leaped back up to it's feet instantly, turning back to the werewolf and letting out it's own loud and angry roar.

Derek let the creature lunge towards him. He threw a few punches and much to his dismay, the creature easily dodged every one of his attacks.

Bo swirled around, back-handing the werewolf. It then used it's large, whip-like tail to balance before lifting both it's legs up to kick the werewolf hard in the chest.

Derek flew back, landing on Peter, who grunted loudly before shoving his nephew off. Both werewolves then quickly scrambled back to their feet and lunged for the creature together.

Bo seemed to let out a little sniggering sound before leaped effortlessly over both of their heads and landing a kick to the back of both their heads just before landing on it's feet.

This time, Derek went flying and landed into one of the picnic tables, smashing it to pieces. Peter flew it the opposite direction, landing back against the metal slide, face first this time.

Derek screwed his eyes shut for a moment, for once, just allowing himself to see Stiles' pretty dark, amber orbs. He then forced himself back to his feet and swirled back around. He let out an angry roar before darting towards the creature and this time, he landed a hard punch to it's face.

Bo hissed loudly, narrowing it's eyes at the werewolf.

Derek used it's angry distraction to his advantage, repeating another couple of punches to it's face. When the creature finally stumbled back in pain, he wasted no time and grabbed the creature by the throat. He pulled the creature's back against his chest, standing behind it as it struggled violently against him. "Peter!" He growled, glaring over at his so-called uncle.

Peter stumbled to his feet and hobbled over to them as fast as he could. He felt slightly dizzy still, but thankfully it was already beginning to wear off.

Derek held the creature's throat tightly, the tips of his claws digging into it's scaly flesh, drawing small rivers of bright green blood.

Bo struggled, it's entire body trying to shake free, but failed miserably.

"Do it!" Derek growled.

Peter nodded, raising his hand before swiping down and slicing his own claws through the creature's throat.

Bo's entire body suddenly froze, the green bloody substance now spurting from it's mouth.

However, Peter didn't stop there.

Derek slowly released the creature when it finally gave up it's struggling, letting it's now lifeless body sink to the soft grass...

...The next morning, Sheriff Stilinski woke up and the very first thing he did was check in on his daughter. And when he found her curled up in bed, hands over her ears and whimpering loudly, he really didn't know what the hell to do.

He quickly shuffled back to his own bedroom, grabbing his cellphone from his nightstand and put it on speed dial 4.

He trusted Scott with his daughter's life, but he also knew that there was one person who probably knew more about all of this nonsense.

And thankfully, that person answered on just the second ring.

"Sheriff, I was actually just about to call you. I'll be heading over real soon." As usual, the older werewolf's tone with the Sheriff was highly polite and pleasant, but also always held an all-business-like twinge to it. The guy was always so serious. And that was really saying something for the Sheriff.

"Hey, Derek." The Sheriff greeted him quickly. "You might wanna hurry the hell up. Seriously."

There was a brief silence from Derek before he finally replied. "Is Stiles okay?" He asked, his voice barely above a mumble.

The Sheriff sighed sadly. "I really don't know... Just... Please hurry."

"I'm already on my way."


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I keep wondering if I'm hurting her with my thoughts or not."

Once again, Lydia stood in front of her next suspect, staring confidently down at the other redhead. Although, instead of the library, this time, she was stood in one of the empty classrooms. "Well?" She asked, shooting the younger girl an expectant look.

"'Do I often think my classmates are spying on me or otherwise acting suspiciously?'" Nancy repeated the question, shooting the older redhead a bored look.

"Yes." Lydia huffed impatiently.

Nancy smirked smugly. "Not until now." She stated snootily.

Lydia simply glared at her arch nemesis...

...Danny sat on the picnic bench across from his next suspect, his sheet of questions laid out in front of him.

"What?" Larry asked with a mouthful of his sandwich. "Tawk 'ouder, dude." He spluttered.

Danny wrinkled his nose in disgust before speaking up as he was told. "I'm just saying -- it's gotta be really frustrating, trying to keep your little secret. You gotta be kinda filling up with resentment... Maybe unexpressed rage... Just waiting to burst out... Like, say; today? At lunch?"

"What the hell are you talking about, dude?" Larry asked, looking very confused now. "And what secret? Being gay?" He asked with a light chuckle.

Danny glanced around and then back to Larry with a clearly surprised look.

Larry chuckled again, grinning brightly. "Dude, I'm out. Didn't you hear?"

Danny shook his head. "Good for you." He added with a genuine smile.

Larry's grin widened even more, if possible. "Yeah, dude, thanks." He said, shooting him a grateful smile. "Dude, I'm so out that I got my grandma trying to fix me up with guys."

Danny chuckled at that, shaking his head in amusement...

...It was now only 2 and a half hours until lunch time and 2 and a half hours until the student killer would finally be revealed. Though, as the gang flocked back into the school library, they hoped it wouldn't get to that point.

"Freddy." Isaac said.

Allison nodded. "He's the only one we couldn't find." She explained.

"Freddy Iverson?" Scott asked.

Both Allison and Isaac nodded in response.

"The nerdy guy who writes the school newspaper?" Aiden asked, arching a curious brow.

Attending this school from the very beginning and knowing it rather well -- like an oddly disturbing second home -- Lydia, Scott, Isaac and Danny all nodded in response.

"But that doesn't mean anything yet." Allison said.

"Yeah. Why would anyone lie?" Lydia scoffed sarcastically.

Allison smirked in amusement.

"Fuck, we're running out of time. We can't figure out if it's really him without catching the little creep." Scott said, looking slightly annoyed.

"No shit, Sherlock." Aiden scoffed.

This time, Lydia smirked in amusement. Whereas Scott simply glared at the cocky Alpha twin. He really did prefer Ethan.

"Sherlock... Pff. Over-used." Isaac mumbled, smirking when Aiden then glared at him.

"Let's go check the office again." Allison said before marching back towards the double doors...

...John stood in the open doorway of his daughter's bedroom, his eyes locked on her curled up form suffocating under all the blankets. He sighed tiredly, rubbing his own throbbing head as he leaned against the frame of the door. He winced slightly when he heard her whimper loudly in pain and fought the urge to rush over to her.

"Hey." Cora slowly sauntered down the hallway and stood beside him. She glanced over at Stiles and frowned deeply in concern.

"I can't stand this." John croaked, his throat aching almost as much as his breaking heart. "I just wanna hold her and let her know that I'm always here for her, but... I keep wondering if I'm hurting her with my thoughts or not."

Cora sighed sadly and glanced over to the worn out-looking Sheriff. She'd heard through Stiles herself about how she'd lost her mother at a very young age and Cora knew all too well what it felt like; to lose everyone that you love. "You're not... Not anymore, anyway." She told him, her voice gentle. She hoped to comfort the poor man, if only a little. But she had faith in her big brother. She knew that when he wanted something, there was no stopping him. And she also knew that he cared for Stiles, which did help.

"What'd you mean?" John asked, now facing the young she wolf with a look of confusion.

Cora sighed sadly once again. "She can't decipher any single thought anymore. There's too many voices in there for her to recognise any one."

Before John had time to even process that new piece of information, there was a loud knock on the front door. He and Cora glanced at one another briefly before both bolting down the hallway and down the stairs. Of course, Cora reached the front door first and quickly pulled it open.

Derek stood there and held up his right arm and in his hand was a Mountain Dew bottle of water, though, it was half filled with a bright green liquid. "I got it." He said, motioning to the bottle.

"Thank God." John mumbled, breathing a huge sigh of relief as he closed the door behind the male werewolf.

The 3 of them quickly rushed back up the stairs, Derek going first with the bottle, John right behind him and Cora closely behind him. John and Cora held back, standing in Stiles' bedroom doorway for the moment as they watched intently. And with hope.

Derek set took the cap off of the bottle before setting both down of her nightstand. He sat down slowly on the bed beside her and carefully reached over. He placed one hand at the back of her neck and the other on her left shoulder before gently pulling her up into a sitting position.

Dazed, Stiles tried to push him away. "Ugh... No... Don't... Please..." She mumbled, screwing her eyes tightly shut again.

Derek forced himself to ignore the dull ache in his chest as he pulled her across the bed slowly. He lightly rested the upper half of her body against his own, his other hand still at the back of her neck and holding her head up. He then carefully reached over and grabbed the bottle of green liquid.

"Stop... Please..." Stiles whimpered, still weakly trying to pull away from him.

"I'm gonna help you... I promised." Derek whispered against the shell of her ear. He knew that Cora had probably heard, but he really didn't care right now. He then held the bottle up to her lips, tilting her head back slightly.

Stiles protested, but only for a few moments.

Derek forced another few gulps down her before finally placing the near-empty bottle back down on her nightstand. He felt her entire body slowly begin to relax and smiled slightly to himself. He then carefully laid her back down and covered her with the blankets before slowly standing up.

"Is she gonna be okay now?" John asked.

Derek was about to answer until he saw both John and Cora's eyes widened. He swirled around, only to see Stiles' entire body seizing violently. "Shit. No." He growled, darting back to her side.

"What the fuck is happening?" John roared, looking completely distraught as he rushed forward.

"Derek! Help her!" Cora shrieked, rushing to the other side of the bed.

Derek ignored them both, his eyes set on Stiles as he grabbed her shoulders gently, but firmly and tried to hold her still.

"I'm calling an ambulance!" John snapped, rushing back towards the door.

"No!" Derek roared. "They can't help her!"

"And neither can you, it seems!" John snapped back before storming out of the room.

"Wait!" Cora called, her eyes staring intently as Stiles' body suddenly stilled completely.

John rushed back into the room instantly, his eyes glued to his daughter as he stood beside her.

Derek slowly loosened his grip on her shoulders and found himself automatically running his knuckles lightly over her flushed-raw cheek. "Stiles?"


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "The review."

It had been at least 20 minutes since Stiles' body had stopped convulsing and now, all that was left to do was to wait, and that's all they could do. Cora stood in the open bedroom doorway, eyeing the situation carefully, her eyes flickering from her brother to Stiles. John stood at the foot of his daughter's bed, watching over her very closely for any signs of consciousness.

And then there was Derek, who was sat on the edge of the bed, his hand clasping hers gently as he watched her intently. After a few more moments of silence between the 3, Derek noticed Stiles' eyes twitching a little and then felt her hand grasp weakly at his fingers. His eyes stayed glued to her face as John and Cora both edged closer to the bed.

"Stiles?" John whispered hopefully. He slowly knelt down on the floor beside her, taking her other hand in both of his own and clasping tightly. "Stiles, baby, come back to us." He pleaded softly.

Cora stood at the foot of Stiles' bed, watching patiently, but still with great concern filling her brown orbs.

Derek's eyes stayed glued to her twitching eyelids, felt her fingers gripping his own just a little tighter. "Stiles?" He murmured, gently gripping her hand in return.

Stiles frowned slightly, hearing her names being called. After one more effort, she then finally managed to open her eyes, though, he sight was somewhat blurred. Still, she'd recognise that voice anywhere. "Sour wolf?" She whispered, trying to focus her gaze on his dark, looming blur of a body.

In any other situation, Derek probably would have glared at her for that. However, in that moment he felt himself wash over with great relief, his lips tugging into a small, barely noticeable smile. He was happy that she was awake and he was happy that she'd called him out first. Even when her father was right next to her, too.

"Thank fuck!" John blew out a huge sigh of relief. "Are you okay, baby?" He asked, gripping her hand tightly and pressing it up to his mouth.

Stiles finally managed to focus her vision, her eyes shifting over to her father, right beside her, as always. She smiled softly over at him. "Dad..." She breathed, giving him a slight nod. "I'm okay."

"Do you still hear thoughts?" Cora questioned, her voice gentle, but her expression all too curious.

Both Derek and John waited patiently, but hopefully for Stiles' answer.

Stiles paused, taking a moment to test that theory out and then smiled gleefully when she realised that it was just her inside her head. "No..." She whispered, her lips pulling into an even wider smile as she glanced back over to sour wolf. "You saved me." She recalled.

Derek bit back another smile, where as Cora was smiling to herself. "Well, technically, Peter saved you... He's the one who found out about the cure." He elaborated when she shot him a look of confusion.

Stiles stared at the sour wolf for a moment -- was Derek Hale actually blushing? Because it seemed that way. He seemed slightly bashful about the entire situation. Again, Stiles felt her lips tug into a smile as she shook her head softly. To save them both any potential embarrassment, thankfully she didn't call him out on it.

"Are you sure you're okay, honey?" John asked, eyeing her with concern.

"Yeah, I'm good." Stiles nodded, shooting him a reassuring smile. "Has Scott called yet?" She asked as she slowly pulled herself up into a sitting position.

Before he really could help himself, Derek's hands were already resting on either of her shoulders. He pulled her up slowly, helping her to lean back against the wooden headboard.

"Thanks." Stiles mumbled, shooting the werewolf a small smile.

Derek simply nodded, though, again, he was trying to fight back another smile.

John eyed the werewolf suspiciously, but only for a split second before his concerned gaze returned to his daughter again.

"Not yet." Cora replied.

"What else is going on?" John asked, glancing warily between the werewolf siblings.

"Um, nothing... It's nothing we can't handle. Don't worry about it." Stiles answered a little too quickly, mentally cursing herself.

John eyed his daughter suspiciously for a moment before sighing loudly in defeat and nodding. He was still pissed with both Derek and Scott for letting what happened to his daughter happen, but he'd also witnessed Derek save her insanity and problem her life, too. So as much as he was pissed off, he was also eternally grateful to have his daughter back fully.

Cora suddenly felt her cellphone vibrating in her pocket and quickly reached for it. "Speak of the Devil and he shall call." She chirped with a sarcastic grin.

"Scott?" Stiles asked, arching a brow in amusement.

"Scott." Cora confirmed with a nod before sauntering off out of the room to answer the call.

Stiles chuckled, watching after her for a few moments. Out of all of the gang, Stiles had grown quite close to Cora. They'd found common ground on the sore subjects of both their families and it had brought an odd comfort with it for the both of them. Scott would always be here best friend, but he would never understand like Cora, Derek, Isaac or even Peter could. Of course, Scott's father was absent for most of his life, but it never bothered Scott. As far as the True Alpha was concerned, he already had everyone he needed. His mother and Stiles and her father had always been enough for him and he'd often told them all that. And now he had his pack, which he valued as much as his actual family. Still, Stiles loved him like the brother she should have always had and loved Melissa like the mother she almost had.

"Do you need anything?" John asked, still eyeing his daughter with deep concern. She still looked rather pale, but he could tell she was already her normal self again.

"Um, the time?" Stiles asked with a sheepish smile.

John shot her an incredulous look before shaking his head, wearing an amused little grin. "Uh," He paused, lifting his left arm to look at his wristwatch. "9:37."

Stiles eyes widened, her eyes snapping over to her window where she finally noticed the sunlight peaking through her blinds. "I'm late for school!" She squealed, throwing the pile of blankets off of her and scrambling out of her bed.

John stared at his daughter as if she were insane -- which she kind of always was and literally almost ended up being, not, but a half hour ago. "Stiles, I really don't think you should go in 'til you feel a little better, at least."

"I have to... Um, big, important test today." Stiles mumbled. She felt bad for lying to her father, but she recognised how much stress she'd already caused him, not to mention all the other cases he had going on at the moment.

"Stiles, he's right." Derek piped up finally, slowly standing from the bed.

"I have to." Stiles repeated. She paused at her closet door and shot the werewolf a pointed look. "You know I do."

Derek said nothing, he simply shot her what he thought was a glare. Though, it looked more like he was sulking. Because he knew she was right. They still had to catch this stupid student killer.

"Fine." John grumbled, glaring at the back of his daughter's head as she rummaged through her closet. "But you call me if you need to come home. And you let Derek or Scott drive you to school and back, 'cause I don't want you on the road right now." He ordered, his voice low and stern.

"I promise." Stiles mumbled distractedly as she pulled on a large red sweater.

John let out another defeated sigh before finally shuffling out of her bedroom just as Cora walked back in.

Cora shot the Sheriff a small smile before walking over to her brother. "They think we've found our killer." She announced.

Stiles shut her closet door after pulling on a pair of brown converse (thankfully, she was still wearing the same jeans from last night) and walked over to the siblings. "Think? What the hell does that mean?" She barked angrily. "We've only got 2 and a half hours left!"

"Well, Scott said they went around interrogating the list of suspects and nothing of our interest actually came up -- just a bunch of your average weirdo teenagers." Cora explained with amused smirk.

"Naturally." Stiles murmured, unable to help smiling slight in amused, too -- damn Cora.

"Anyway," Cora continued. "They're having trouble with the last kid on the list; Freddy Iverson?" She glanced to Stiles, clearly asking if she knew this student.

Of course, Stiles nodded. "Yeah. He's the guy that writes and edits the school newspaper." She explained. "He's kinda weird, too. But I didn't think he was a mental case... Huh, I guess anyone can surprise you."

Derek's jaw tightened as he fought the urge to comment on that last sentence. Of course, in the past, he'd had his cases of severe poor judgment on the people he believed he could trust.

Cora nodded in acknowledgement. "So, what's the plan if we can't find this creep?" She asked, now glancing between Stiles and her big brother.

"Oh, we're gonna find him." Stiles stated boldly, wearing a dark glare. "I am not letting this douche kill half the school -- as appealing as that does actually sound -- just for my dad to have to deal with me moving schools as well as shutting down the entire damn school for some long-ass investigation. We are gonna find this pathetic little bitch and smack some sense into him!"

"Literally?" Cora asked, wearing a humorous smirk.

Even Derek could no longer fight back the urge to smile. This is the Stiles he knew. The Stiles with attitude and the basic skill to defy any authority.

"Literally!" Stiles barked in confirmation.

Cora nodded, wearing a large and excited grin. "Well, alright. Let's go beat up a psycho killer..."

...Meanwhile, back at Beacon Hills High School, the rest of the gang had marched straight down to the school's newspaper office, only to find it completely empty -- once Aiden had picked the lock to break in, of course.

"When the hell did you learn to pick locks? Don't you usually just burst through doors?" Lydia asked, her voice sarcastic, but playful.

Aiden simply grinned proudly as the others strolled into the vacant room.

"Hey, do you smell that?" Scott asked with a sly smirk as he motion silently towards the closed closet door at the back of the room.

Isaac and the twins all took a quick sniff of the air and then smirked and nodded in unison.

Allison made a gesture towards the door, glancing back to Scott, who's smirk widened before he nodded at her to go ahead. Slowly and silently, she crept towards the door before quickly tearing it open only to reveal none other than Freddy Iverson standing in the tiny, paper-filled closet.

"Hello, Freddy." Scott said, his voice low and slightly taunting.

"Who you hiding from?" Allison chirped pleasantly, shooting him a sickly sweet smile.

Freddy stood there in the closet for a few moments, just staring back at the gang and looking very much like a deer caught in the headlights of an on-coming vehicle. "Okay, okay. You got me." He droaned, holding his hands up in surrender as he slowly shuffled out of the closet.

Scott glared at him, wanting to punch him for being so fricking casual and cold towards the entire situation.

"So?" Freddy asked with a rather bored expression as he casually sauntered over to his desk and sat down in the large, leather chair. "What're you gonna do? Get your friends to hold me down while you beat the crap outta me?" He asked, looking highly amused.

Before Scott or any of the other werewolves could snarl out their witty comebacks, Allison jumped right in, glaring dangerously as she marched right up to him. "You fucking bet your sorry ass we are!" She yelled, folding her arms over her chest as she stood right in front of him.

Scott smirked to him, loving how angry his girl could get. And not at him, for once. Which was definitely a bonus.

"Is this guy for fricking real?" Lydia muttered, staring incredulously at Freddy.

"Yeah, dude!" Isaac snapped, also glaring down at Freddy as he stood beside the angry huntress. "You can't just threaten a mass murder without getting someone pretty fucking upset!" He growled out.

Freddy's face fell quickly, but into an expression of complete confusion. "Mass murder? What the hell are you talking about, man?" He asked, seeming beyond lost now. "You're not here about the review?" He asked, now glancing between Scott, Isaac and Danny.

This time, the group looked rather confused as they glanced between one another.

"The review?" Scott asked, looking as lost as Freddy.

"What review?" Isaac asked, staring suspiciously down at Freddy.

"Uh, last Thursday's Lacrosse game." Freddy stated. He reached over his desk, picking last weeks papers up and holding it out.

Danny quickly reached forward and snatched the paper from him.

"Page 3." Freddy told him.

The others waited patiently as Danny opened the newspaper and then read the Lacrosse review out loud. "'Beacon Hills High's Lacrosse team played their sticks as if they had Polish sausages taped to their fingers.'"

Freddy shot the boys a sheepish look when they glared down at him. "Sorry, dudes." He mumbled, wearing a timid grin.

Danny huffed. "No. It's fair." He grumbled, tossing the newspaper back to the desk.

"Yeah. We totally sucked." Isaac admitted, though, he was still glaring down at Freddy.

"Sorry, dudes. I just get a lot of hate mail." Freddy explained. "And... I kinda thought you guys were gonna come deliver some personally." He added with a sheepish smile.

"Great." Lydia huffed. "We're back to square one again."

"Well, I gotta go." Freddy chimed, rising from his chair. "You guys have fun with your little conspiracy." He added with an amused chuckle as he sauntered smugly out of the office.

"We have no shot. The killer is still on the loose. It could be anyone. And we've got just over a half hour left." Allison stated with a troubled frown.

"But we still have time." Scott reminded.

"He's right."

The entire gang snapped their gazes over to the open doorway at the sound of that all too familiar voice. Stiles stood in the doorway, Derek standing behind her.

"Stiles!" Scott gasped, his eyes lighting up instantly. "Are you okay?" He asked, shooting her a concerned look.

Stiles smiled at her best friend; her brother and nodded. "I'm good." She shuffled quickly over to him, the two sharing their usual bear hug.

"You're okay." Allison said, shooting the older girl a soft smile.

Stiles nodded at her, giving her a reassuring smile in return.

"All better now?" Lydia chirped, smiling over at the nerdy girl.

Stiles gave the redhead a smile back and nodded in response.

"So... You can't hear our thoughts anymore?" Ethan asked, eyeing Stiles warily.

Stiles shook her head. "Nope."

"And just when I wasn't thinking about sex." Ethan grumbled to himself with a slight pout.

The others chuckled at that, whereas Danny nudged his boyfriend playfully in the arm with his own, causing Ethan to smirk in amusement.

"Okay, here's the new plan --" Stiles said. "We're gonna find Principle Snyder and somehow get him to evacuate the entire school... I just hope the killer's not waiting outside."

"How're we gonna do that?" Aiden asked, arching an expectant brow.

"Yeah. Snyder's an asshole." Isaac said with a nod of agreement.

"Tell him the truth." Derek stated simply.

"Are you insane?" Scott asked, his eyes slightly widened. "What about your dad? I thought you didn't wanna bother him with this."

"Yeah. Hate to say it, sour wolf, but he's right." Stiles said, shooting the older werewolf a slightly sheepish look.

Derek sighed in defeat and nodded.

"We could tell him that someone let a bunch of rats loose..." Isaac suggested with a lazy shrug.

"Or snakes." Allison added casually.

Stiles eyes narrowed wickedly as she contemplated. "I like it." She said with an approving nod.

"Children, I think I've found something..." Lydia piped up.

The others glanced over to the redhead, bewildered by how none of them had noticed her wander off back over to Freddy's littered desk.

"What is it?" Stiles asked, shuffling quickly over as the others all slowly then followed.

"A letter." Lydia replied, reaching down to pick it up before handing it over.

Stiles took the small slip of paper before reading out loud. "'By this time tomorrow, you will all know what I've done. I'm sure you understand that I had to do it and that although death is never an easy option, it's the only option I have left...'"

"God, doesn't anyone praise the intellectuals! We are so unsung." Lydia huffed with a small pout.

"It's actually signed." Stiles said, looking rather surprised.

"What?" Lydia asked, looking highly amused as she grabbed the letter back. "Who's the idiot that --" She paused, a dark glare quickly forming over her pale, but flawless face. "Greenburg!" she seethed.

"What!?" Scott exclaimed, looking surprised.

"No way!" Isaac exclaimed, looking shocked.

"I knew it!" Danny hissed.

"I had the little fucker in my grasp, too! That slippery little freak!" Lydia barked, looking beyond pissed off.

"Split up." Stiles said, shuffling quickly back towards the open doorway. "We have to find him."

The others quickly followed her, Derek included, who was right beside her, just in case.

"We've got just over 15 minutes." Allison announced as they all piled back out into the school hallway.

Stiles nodded in acknowledgement. "Find him."


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I do know about pain."

Scott burst through the next classroom door, Allison bursting through the opposite classroom across the hallway.

"Anything?" Scott called over his shoulder as he quickly scanned the empty classroom.

"No." Allison replied, shaking her head as she came back into the hallway...

...On the other side of the school, Danny and Ethan were in the same situation as they swept down the hallway, bursting through empty classrooms.

"Greenburg!? You in here, you little creep!?" Ethan called out as he opened the next classroom door. "Huh, guess not." He mumbled, glaring into the vacant room before shutting the door again.

"Anything?" Danny called over his shoulder...

...Aiden shook his head. "Nothing."

Lydia let out an aggravated huff before lacing her hand through her boyfriends and dragging him off to the next classroom.

...Isaac burst through the double doors of the cafeteria where most of the students were gathered for their lunch. He scanned the crowds as quickly as he could, subtly scenting the air for any trace of Greenburg...

...Meanwhile, out in the courtyard, Stiles and Derek were glancing around, scanning through the small groups of students lunching outside.

"You know what Greenburg looks like, right?" Stiles asked, shooting the Beta a hopeful look.

Derek frowned and shook his head. "No, actually." He muttered. He hadn't really been focussed on this stupid kid when trying to help Stiles keep her mind intact.

Stiles let out a little huff. "Crap." She muttered. She glanced around, her eyes briefly landing on Doug Hogan, who was laughing and joking around with his friends and then to Nancy Doyle, who was glaring distastefully right at her. Stiles rolled her eyes and at that movement, she caught something up in the corner of her sights. "Up there!" She exclaimed, pointing to the open arch window of the clock-tower.

Derek glanced up, instantly spotting the young male standing with his back faced to the window and what looked like a large rifle in his arms. He quickly scanned the rest of the building in detail, finding the quickest way to get up there. "The stairs. Go."

Stiles quickly followed closely behind the werewolf and was thankful that he was waiting for her, instead of charging off without her. "How're we --" She paused, having her question answered when the werewolf leaped up onto the stone wall of the stairs. She quickly copied his actions and followed him all the way up the wall.

Derek stopped just under the window of the clock-tower. He swirled back around, waiting for Stiles to catch up to him before holding his hand out for her.

Stiles paused, glancing from his open hand to his face in confusion. "What --"

"Do you trust me?" Derek asked, cutting her off with a look as serious as his question.

Stiles was slightly taken aback by that, but found herself nodding before she could even think it over.

Derek fought back another small smile and nodded. He then reached out, grabbing her hand and gripping it tightly. "I'm gonna throw you up." He explained.

"What!? No!" Stiles hissed, looking completely terrified.

"Trust me." Derek reminded, shooting her a rather sincere look.

Stiles shot him a pleading look, but finally when she realised that time had run out already, she nodded limply. "Okay. But if you kill me, I'll kill you." She mumbled.

Derek was unable to help smiling this time, though, he looked more amused. "1... 2..."

Stiles winced slightly in anticipation, while also trying to ready herself for another possible near death experience. "3..." She whispered, more to herself.

In the next second, Derek swooped her up from under the knees before pushing up with all his might.

Stiles squealed slightly as she was literally catapulted the last few meters into the air and the second she felt gravity begin to take over, she reached out and grabbed the bottom ledge of the window.

Greenburg swirled around, the rifle aimed loosely towards her. He stared at her, clearly startled and frozen in place.

Stiles hauled herself through the window as quickly as she possibly could.

"Stay back!" Greenburg yelled, aiming the rifle at her. He was trying to be intimidating, but the fear and wariness was written clearly across his face. "Seriously, stay the fuck back, Stilinski!" He warned. "How the fuck did you even do that!?" He then asked, looking beyond confused and slightly afraid, of her.

As if on cue, Stiles heard Derek calling up to her. "Stiles! Are you okay!?"

Greenburg's eyes widened a little more. "Who the hell is that!?" He growled, taking a step towards the window.

Stiles quickly stepped in front of the window, holding her hands up in surrender to Greenburg in the process. "It's okay. It's just a friend of mine."

"Tell him to stay the fuck away!" Greenburg ordered, now glaring at her.

"Okay. Alright." Stiles nodded before calling back to the werewolf. "I'm fine, sour wolf. Just give me a minute." She said, being careful not to use his name, while her eyes were still glued to the rifle-wielding teen. "Okay, Jacob... You maybe wanna point that thing somewhere else?" She asked carefully, pointing to the firearm in his trembling hands.

Greenburg glanced down to the rifle, glanced at her and then sighed quietly before slowly pointing the barrell to the ground. "Don't think you're gonna try stop me." He warned her with another glare.

"No, no. No stopping. I'm just here for the lovely view." Stiles replied with a casual shrug. "Oh, hey! Look! City Hall!" She gasped in awe, pointing to the window behind him.

Frazzled and sweating heavily, Greenburg pointed the gun back to her as a warning. "Just go away!" He snapped angrily. Though, there was a hint of desperation and pleading in his tone.

Derek listened closely, drowning out the other students and paying close attention just in case.

Stiles sighed softly and shook her head. "Sorry, but that's never gonna happen." She told him, now shooting him a more serious look.

"Oh, you think I won't use this!?" Greenburg sneered, taking a threatening step towards her.

Derek frowned deeply as he listened to Stiles' heart beating hard and fast. He could hear her calm words, but it wasn't fooling him. And he had to try very hard to stay where he was instead of just leaping up there and saving her. Like he always did. And always would.

Stiles shrugged limply. "I don't know, Jacob. I just --"

"Stop that! Just stop doing that!" Greenburg snapped angrily, taking another step towards her.

Stiles didn't know how, but she still forced herself to remain calm. After all, she been in worse situations than this over the past 3 and a half years. Actually, for most of her damn life. So she was not about to be cut down by this idiot. "Stop doing what?" She asked calmly, shooting him a confused look.

"Stop saying my name like that! Like we're friends! We're not friends!" Greenburg roared, his eyes now welling up slightly. "You all just think I'm an idiot! A creepy idiot!"

"I don't." Stiles stated as a matter of fact. Even if it was kind of a lie. But it still seemed to have the reaction she needed.

Greenburg finally lowered the rifle, but only a little. He looked rather surprised by her statement and then confused again.

"I don't actually really ever think about you a whole lot. No one here in this school does, to be honest." Stiles told him (and having known their thoughts, she was only telling him the truth, whether he wanted to hear it or not,) her voice casual and collected rather than cruel. She wasn't trying to be mean, she just needed him to understand; he wasn't alone. Whatever turmoil he felt, he was never alone.

Greenburg's expression faltered slightly.

"It bugs you, doesn't it." Stiles stated rather than asked when she noticed his troubled expression. "You have all this pain, all these feelings... And nobody even cares, because they're not really paying attention."

Greenburg scoffed at that last part. "Oh, you think I just want attention?" He barked angrily.

"Oh, no." Stiles replied all too sarcastically. "No. I think you're up here with a high-powered rifle, because you wanna blend in."

Greenburg glared at her again.

"Believe it or not, Jacob. I do understand. I do know about pain." Stiles told him, her voice soft.

Greenburg scoffed again. "Oh, right. 'Cause being beautiful, intelligent and athletic is really a tough burden to bare." He stated, his voice dripping with bitterness.

This time, Stiles scoffed and shook her head in dismay. "Okay, y'know what? I was wrong; you are an idiot." She snapped. "My life, on occasion, happens to suck beyond belief. Sometimes, more than I can fricking handle."

Greenburg glared at her, but said nothing. She was probably right there. He didn't know her. Not really. And she didn't know him, either.

"And it's not just my life." Stiles continued, her voice now gentle. "Every single person down there is ignoring your pain, because they're too busy trying to deal with their own."

Derek chest tightened as he continued to listen closely. He had been right all along; she really wasn't as goofy as she sometimes look. Even if he did find that rather cute and endearing, too.

As Stiles turned to face the window she'd climbed through, Greenburg slowly lowered the gun to his side. He let out a little sigh of defeat as he shuffled over to the window to stand beside her.

"All of them." Stiles continued, mostly talking to herself now. "The beautiful ones. The popular ones. The intelligent ones. The athletic ones. Even the ones that pick on you... Everyone."

Greenburg glanced out of the window, staring down at the small groups of students out in the courtyard.

"If you could hear what they're thinking... What they're feeling... The loneliness... The confusion..." Stiles mumbled softly, also staring down at her fellow students. "It looks so quiet down there. Doesn't it?" She glanced back to Greenburg.

Greenburg frowned softly and nodded in agreement.

Stiles sighed sadly, shaking her head as she glanced back down. "Well, it's not... It's deafening." She whispered, shivering slightly as she recalled the many, many voices invading her mind, none of them hers.

Greenburg let out a tired sigh, the rifle hanging loosely in his grasp.

"Y'know, I could've taken that by now." Stiles motioned towards the weapon, shooting him a genuine smile.

Greenburg shot her a weak and brief smile back and nodded. "I know." He whispered before carefully handing it over to her.

Stiles quickly and carefully took the rifle from him and immediately pulled the bolt back to eject the bullets before they clattered to the ground. She then leaned over through the window and spotted Derek still waiting patiently below.

"Are you okay?" Derek asked, glancing back up at her.

Stiles smiled and nodded. "Just peachey." She chirped, earning a small smile in return. "Catch." She told him before tossing the empty rifle down.

Derek lifted one hand, catching the weapon with ease. He glanced down at the rifle and then back up at her.

Stiles chuckled when she noticed his impressed look before pulling herself back into the clock-tower.

Greenburg sighed sadly. "I just wanted it all to stop." He whispered, mainly to himself.

Stiles frowned deeply. "Yeah, well, I don't think mass-murder is the answer, dude. You would have ended up in jail with a whole new world of pain."

"What!?" Greenburg spluttered, his eyes wide. "What the hell are you talking about?" He gasped, looking completely confused now.

Stiles paused, also staring back at him in confusion. "Um, y'know... Actions always having consequences and all that." She explained slowly, shooting him a 'duh' look.

"W-what?" Greenburg stuttered, still looking utterly lost. "I would never hurt anybody... I, I mean I've thought about it, sure, but I don't think I even could, if I wanted to." He told her.

Stiles still looked completely confused. "What? But --"

Greenburg sighed before shamefully correcting the little misunderstanding. "I came up here to kill myself."

Stiles expression faltered and then dropped slightly as she realised what his letter really meant. "Oh..."


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You don't ever have to play games with me."

The next morning, Stiles awoke to the sound of light tapping on her bedroom window. Letting out a huff, she threw her blankets from her legs and stumbled lazily over, following the sound.. She was expecting to see Scott, so when she pulled the blind up, she was surprised to see Derek crouching there on her kitchen roof. Frowning in confusion, she pulled the window up.

"Y'know, this is all very Twilight." Stiles grumbled, rubbing her tired eyes.

"What?" Derek asked, looking somewhat confused.

Stiles rolled her eyes. "Never mind." She mumbled as she shuffled lazily back over to her bed and plopped back down.

Derek took that as his invitation, hoisting himself rather gracefully through the window for such a large build.

"So, what's going on?" Stiles asked, staring curiously over at him.

Derek frowned slightly. "Nothing." He said. "Well, apart from the Silver thing... I, uh, I just wanted to see if you were okay."

Stiles shot him an odd look. "Um, I'm fine." She mumbled, wondering why he care all of a sudden.

Derek nodded. "I gotta go."

Stiles frowned slightly, now confused again. "Um, okay." She mumbled, her frown deepening slightly when she felt her chest tighten as he made his way back towards her window.

Derek halted abruptly before slowly turning back to face her. "Why were you trying to read my mind?" He asked, shooting her an oddly intense look.

Stiles looked confused again for a moment. "Just curious... You're not exactly into sharing." She mumbled with a shrug.

Derek sighed, but nodded. "You don't ever have to play games with me, Stiles." He told her, his voice gentle and his eyes locked on hers. "You just have to ask..."

...Allison stared at her friend, waiting for her to continue. "Well?" She asked impatiently. "Then what happened?"

"Yeah. Did he kiss you?" Lydia asked, wearing a wicked grin.

"What? No." Stiles muttered, shooting the redhead a glare.

Both Allison and Lydia looked rather disappointed by that reply.

"He left. I got ready for school." Stiles explained simply, rolling her eyes at her so-called taunting friends.

"Better not tell Scott." Allison said, biting her lip nervously.

"What? Why?" Stiles asked, wearing a confused frown.

"'Cause he'll kick Derek ass for even thinking about you. Duh." Lydia stated as a matter of fact.

"Ladies, nothing happened!" Stiles snapped, now glaring at them both again.

"Oh, please!" Lydia snapped, rolling her eyes. "Even so, don't tell me you've never noticed the way your sour wolf looks at you, all dreamy-eyed and what-not."

"Okay. You're clearly insane. Moving on." Stiles stated, dismissing the subject completely.

"You really haven't noticed?" Allison asked, looking rather surprised.

"Are you hearing yourself right now?" Stiles asked seriously. "This is Derek Hale you're talking about here. You remember Derek Hale, right? Tall, brooding, constantly miserable werewolf. Wears a lot of black."

Allison chuckled. "Whatever, Stiles."

"Wow. I didn't think you were this stupid." Lydia stated.

Stiles glared at the redhead, who simply smirked smugly back at her...

...When the school day was finally over, Stiles made her way into the parking lot where Scott and Allison were already waiting by her Jeep for her. Stiles father had banned her from driving for at least another couple of days, much to Stiles annoyance.

"Hello, dweebs." Stiles chimed, shooting the couple a smile.

"Hey, Stiles." Allison greeted. "Are we all still on for the weekend?" She asked, eyeing the older girl with excitement.

"This weekend?" Stiles asked, looking confused.

Allison glared at her boyfriend. "You forgot to tell her!"

"Oops." Scott mumbled, wearing a sheepish smile.

Allison huffed before facing the other girl. "This Friday night. Jungle Club. Danny knows one of the bouncers, who's promised us VIP." She explained with an eager grin.

Stiles chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, sure. Sounds like fun..."

...With Stiles father working another late night, she'd decided to take Scott's offer of hanging out at his place for a few hours.

"Y'know, you should really hand over the murder profiles to the Yearbook nerds." Scott said, wearing an amused grin. "I mean, at least it'll be a good read this year."

Stiles chuckled at that just as Scott's mother appeared in his open bedroom doorway.

"Hey." Melissa chirped, shooting the teens her usual bright smile. "How're you doing, Stiles? I heard about what happened. Your dad told me."

'Oh, I bet he did.' Stiles thought. After getting over the shock of her father and Scott's mother having sexual relations, she actually found it rather amusing. "Well, I gotta say that I am loving how quiet it is. Nobody in here, but me." She replied with a grin, motioning to her head.

Melissa smiled and nodded. "Well, I'm glad to hear that." She said. "And what about that Greenburg kid? How's he doing?" She asked, now glancing between both the teens.

"Pretty crappy." Scott replied. "His parents are freaking out."

"Who could blame them?" Melissa sighed softly, shaking her head.

"He got suspended." Scott said.

"And toting a piece to school, not exactly winning him a place with the in-crowd." Stiles added. "But... I think he's dealing."

"Well, it's really good of you to check in on him. And for what you did for him." Melissa said, shooting Stiles a proud smile. "You're a good girl, Stiles."

Scott nodded in agreement, shooting his best friend a similar smile to his mother.

Stiles blushed lightly. "Well, it's kinda nice to be able to help someone in a non-supernatural killing capacity... Except, now he's starting to get that look where he's gonna ask me to Prom." She added that last part with a mortified expression.

Scott chuckled in amusement.

"Well... It probably would be really good for his self-esteem... Y'know, if you..." Melissa trailed off when Stiles glared at her and Scott shot her a horrified look. "Or not..."

"Oh, come on! What am I -- Saint Stiles!?" Stiles whined. "He's like 3 feet tall!"

Scott chuckled in amusement again.

Melissa rolled her eyes. "Well, I'm real glad to see that you're recovering from your psychic encounter more or less intact." She said, her tone laced with sarcasm, though her expression was playful.

Stiles and Scott shared a smug smirk.

"Either of you feel like helping me with dinner?" Melissa asked, smirking smugly back when their expressions dropped.

Stiles huffed, but nodded in agreement. "Fine." She grumbled, lazily pulling herself from the desk chair. "Y'know, if you're not too busy having sex with my father." She mumbled casually, trying to hide her smug smirk as she walked passed her.

Melissa's eyes widened in shock as she stared after Stiles.

"What!?" Scott exclaimed, also staring after Stiles, who he could hear chuckling as she hopped down the stairs.

"Who told you!?" Melissa yelped, quickly rushing after Stiles.

Scott's eyes widened even more as he stared after his mother. "WHAT!?"


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Honestly, I don't know what Hale sees in her."

Friday night finally came around and without any more supernatural disturbances (much to the gangs' glee). And as Danny promised them, the friends were able to get into Jungle Club without any problems. Over at the bar, fetching another round of beers, Danny and Ethan were still waiting to order amongst an entire cue of people. Meanwhile, over at their booth, Stiles and Isaac were sat opposite Scott and Allison, nursing what little of their first beers were left.

"Well, I think we should just get a limo." Lydia stated rather than suggested. "It seems traditional to me."

"And expensive." Scott muttered, earning a glare from the redhead.

"Y'know what, that actually sounds like fun." Isaac said, smiling sheepishly when Scott rolled his eyes at the younger werewolf.

"Yeah." Stiles agreed. "And it is our last Homecoming Dance ever. So maybe we should make a big deal out of it." She suggested, rolling her eyes when Scott let out a little huff.

"Y'know what else is fun? Public buses. You meet the funniest people." Aiden stated, wearing a teasing grin.

Lydia shot her boyfriend a completely mortified expression, whereas Scott was smirking in amusement.

Aiden chuckled in amusement, unable to help his taunting antics. "Guys, back me up here." He pleaded, glancing between the younger male werewolves.

Scott simply nodded in agreement, whereas Isaac seemed less for that option.

Stiles smirked. "Well, if it's a dollar issue; we could just take one of my dad's patrol cars. I'm sure he wouldn't mind if we told him what it was for." She suggested, though, she was only half joking there.

Lydia glared over at Stiles. "A police car?" She scoffed loudly. "The Homecoming Queen does not roll up to the dance in a police car." She stated in a snooty tone. "Use your head, Stilinski!" She snapped, shaking her head in dismay.

Stiles simply rolled her eyes again.

"Well, technically, you haven't even been elected for Homecoming Queen yet." Allison piped up.

Lydia shot the brunette a rather pointed glare.

"Although, you certainly will be. I have no doubt." Allison added quickly, saving herself with a sheepish little smile.

"No. We're are going to take a limo. End of discussion." Lydia concluded.

Scott let out a huff of defeat when his girlfriend shot him a pleading little pout. "Okay, okay. Fine."

"Yay!" Allison chirped, giving her boyfriend a quick peck on the cheek. "It'll be fun."

"A private limo, huh?" Stiles grinned, also liking that idea. "I've never been in one before. I bet they're real pretty."

Lydia smiled and nodded. "You'd be betting right." She replied knowingly.

"And if we split the cost, it can't be that expensive." Isaac piped up. "Right?" He asked, glancing towards the redhead.

Lydia shrugged. "I guess. But tell you what -- I'll pay a quarter and you guys can split the rest. Y'know, since it was my idea. My treat."

"What's the catch?" Stiles asked cautiously, earning a chuckle from the boys.

Lydia smirked. "No catch." She replied all too casually.

There was a few seconds of silence before Stiles spoke up again. "I don't buy it." She said, shaking her head.

"Me neither." Scott agreed, eyeing the redhead suspiciously.

Aiden chuckled. "She wants you all to pay for the champagne in the limo as well."

Lydia shot her boyfriend a playful glare for ratting her out. "Hey, that's the least you guys can do for always almost getting me killed."

"Um, you're not the only one." Stiles said, shooting the redhead an incredulous look.

Lydia huffed. "Yeah, well, at least you're still human. You can walk away from all this bullshit, anytime you want." She stated pointedly.

Stiles thought the words over before finally nodding in agreement. "Touche."

Lydia smirked triumphantly. "So, what's going on, Stiles?" She asked, quickly changing the subject.

"What'd you mean?" Stiles asked, shooting the redhead a slightly confused look.

"Hasn't Derek asked you about the Homecoming Dance yet? Ugh, what gives with that idiot!?" Lydia asked, looking just as confused.

"What!?" Stiles gaped at the redhead in disbelief.

"Uh, what!?" Scott snapped, his narrowing at the redhead.

Even Allison was staring at Lydia in shock. And while Aiden looked as though he was about to burst out laughing, Isaac looked about as pleased as Scott.

Lydia rolled her eyes at Scott, smirking slightly. "You're just as stupid as Stiles. It's so painfully obvious." She muttered, shaking her head in dismay.

"Lydia Martin!" Stiles snapped, now glaring at the redhead.

Allison was still rather shocked for the redhead's blatant outburst, but now she could no longer help smiling in amusement.

"Stiles, what the actual fuck?" Scott asked, staring in confusion at his best friend. "Derek? Derek Hale? Really?" He asked, shaking his head at her.

"Shut up, you idiot!" Stiles barked back, glaring over at him. "It's just Lydia's insane imagination." She explained, shooting the redhead another glare.

Lydia simply smirked smugly.

"So... He's not taking you to the Homecoming Dance?" Isaac asked, shooting her a slightly hurt-filled look.

"No." Stiles replied firmly, shooting the redhead one more glare. "You are." She added, shooting the curly-haired werewolf a bright smile. "I mean... You still are, right?"

Isaac's expression lit up slightly as he nodded. "Yeah... I mean, if you want to." He mumbled.

This time, Scott smirked knowingly to himself as did Allison and Lydia as they shared a brief look.

"I think the judges will accept that as a 'yes.'" Aiden piped up with a grin.

Isaac smiled and nodded just as Danny and Ethan finally made their way back over to the booth with a tray filled with bottles of beer.

"Finally. Ugh." Lydia groaned, grabbing two bottles and passing one over to Aiden, who smiled gratefully and leaned over to peck her cheek.

"Drink up, my grunts!" Danny chirped as he placed the tray over the table and slid in the booth beside Lydia, Ethan sliding in beside him.

"So, what's the topic of discussion?" Danny asked, glancing around the table.

Stiles simply glared over at Lydia, who simply smirked smugly once more...

...Silver stood on the rooftop of the building opposite, over-looking the Jungle Club building from across the street. She'd been standing there, perched on the ledge and hidden in the darkness for hours, watching and waiting. Tonight, she was here only to watch and wait. After they'd killed her precious Bo, she knew she had to be more careful.

However, it wasn't all a loss. The killing of Bo had only proved the very fact she needed. She wanted to know how to hurt Derek, how to make him give up his pack and surrender to her. And now she knew where the heart of this so-called pack laid. In the heart of the only human.

Silver's eyes burned bright red as she finally spotted the group flooding drunkenly out of the club. Although, she noticed that Derek himself was absent as were Peter and that little sister of his.

"Is that her?"

Silver's lips slowly curled into a wicked grin, her long canines glinting in the moonlight. "In the nubile flesh, my friend."

The male werewolf standing beside her chuckled, sounding highly amused. "Well, she is cute... For a useless sack of human flesh."

Silver's smile widened, her bright red orbs glued to the nerdy little girl. "She's our target."

The werewolf chuckled once again. "Honestly, I don't get what Hale sees in her."

Silver finally tore her eyes away from the girl to face the male and grinned slyly. "Neither do I... But I guess we'll find out."


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Well, do I look like Derek to you?"

That night after they were done with the clubbing scene, the gang said their goodbyes and parted. While Allison (being one of the most sober of the gang) drove Scott, Isaac, Danny and Ethan home, where Stiles had driven Lydia and Aiden home. Stiles said her goodbye to the couple as they clambered out and walked into the redhead's pretty and lavish house. Stiles then drove herself home and thankfully, the streets were pretty vacant, save for a couple of the main roads.

When she finally pulled up outside her house, Stiles noticed that all the lights were off and let out a disappointed sigh when she saw that her father's patrol car wasn't in the small driveway. Stiles climbed out of her Jeep and locked it up before shuffling lazily up the driveway. She pulled out her keys and unlocked the door, letting herself in before shutting it quietly behind her. In the darkness, she was thankful she knew her way around as she tossed her keys into the glass bowl just inside the front door. She then slowly shuffled down the hallway and up the stairs to her bedroom. Quietly, she opened the door and stepped in, closing it behind her and then finally flicking on her main bedroom light. And then finally, when she turned around, her eyes instantly widened at she wolf sitting casually at the end of her bed.

"Holy shit!" Stiles squeaked, holding a hand over her racing heart.

Silver smiled brightly. "Well, hello there, cutie-pie." She chirped all too sweetly.

"What'd you want!?" Stiles snapped, glaring at the werewolf. She was trying to sound intimidating, or at the very least, not as afraid as she really was right now. Even if she knew the she wolf could hear her racing pulse.

"I want Derek." Silver replied simply.

"Well, do I look like Derek to you?" Stiles asked, sarcasm dripping from her tone.

Silver bit back a growl and slowly rose from the teen's bed, though, made no movement towards her.

Stiles eyed her cautiously, expecting anything and everything. 'Oh, God, I'm gonna die...' She thought, though, she was trying her damn near hardest to stay as calm as possible. Showing fear would only make things worse and easier for the she Alpha, she knew that all too well.

"I'm kinda curious actually." Silver said, her tone casual and calm. "Why do you hang around a pack of werewolves when you have no real connection to any of them? Are you their little pet?" She teased with a smirk. "Are you Derek's little pet?"

'Why is sour wolf always getting me into trouble?' Stiles thought hopelessly. 'Even Scott doesn't get me into this much trouble... What's up with that?'

"Or maybe you mean a little more to them than that... Mean more to Derek." Silver suggested rather than asked.

Stiles shot her a look of confusion. "An acute pain in his furry ass, maybe?" She asked. Though, she was only half joking.

Silver stared at the teen for a few moments, looking somewhere between confused and intrigued. "You don't know, do you?" She stated rather than asked as she chuckled in amusement. "Well, I gotta say; I didn't expect that. I assumed Hale at least had the balls to take what's his. Before someone else does, that is." She added that last part with a sadistic little smirk as she eyed the teen rather hungrily. Literally hungrily.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Stiles asked, looking way beyond confused by this point...

...Peter groaned quietly, shaking his head in dismay before answering his rather dim nephew. "I'm talking about you wolfing up and telling Stiles --"

"There is nothing to tell." Derek cut him off with his usual glare.

"Oh, really?" Peter asked, shooting his nephew an unimpressed look.

"Uncle Peter, leave him alone." Cora said, shooting her uncle a frown. Though, she did also seemed slightly amused by their bickering.

Peter glanced between his niece and nephew before sighing in defeat. "Fine." He huffed. "You wanna bury your head in the sand until something bad does happen? Fine." He muttered as he stormed over to the elevator, slamming the partition behind him before pressing the 'down' button.

"Thanks." Derek said, shooting his baby sister a grateful smile. "I thought he'd never leave." He muttered as he plopped lazily down on the couch beside her.

Cora chuckled in amusement. "No problem." She replied.

"When I finally managed to move out of this shit hole, Peter is definitely finding a place of his own." Derek vowed.

Cora smirked. "And what about me?" She asked with a pout.

Derek rolled his eyes playfully. "Don't worry. You'll be coming with me." He promised, shooting her a reassuring smile. He still felt all kinds of guilt for not even having a fricking clue that she had survived the fire and had been out there all these years without him by her side. None of them knew. Not Peter. Not even Laura had known.

Cora smiled brightly, looking very pleased with that response. "Y'know, Peter's not entirely insane."

Derek simply shot her a 'what-the-fuck-ever' look.

Cora chuckled in amusement again. "Okay, maybe I spoke too soon there." She admitted. "But still... Stiles is --"

"Don't." Derek cut her off quickly. Though, he sounded rather pleading.

Cora frowned softly. "Derek,"

"We're not talking about this. Ever." Derek told her, his voice a little sterner as was his expression.

"And why the hell not? What the fuck is wrong with you!?" Cora barked with a glare.

"Nothing is wrong with me!" Derek snapped, glaring back at her.

"Exactly." Cora said snootily. "Nothing is wrong with you. You're just afraid --"

"I'm not afraid of anything." Derek interrupted her again, his expression filled with as much defiance as his tone.

"Oh, really?" Cora scoffed loudly.

"I'm doing this for her as much as I'm doing it for myself. She better off... It's better this way." Derek grumbled, now glaring at the floor.

Cora scoffed loudly again. "That's total bullshit!" She sneered. "You never cared about this shit before. Sure, you're taste in women is something left to be desired of," She smirked smugly when he glared darkly at her. "But Stiles is different. You know she is."

"Are you hearing yourself right now?" Derek asked, shooting her a look of disbelief. "She's just a fucking kid."

"No, she isn't." Cora said, shaking her head with a small smile. "She's one of the best people we know. Saved our lives more times than we can fucking count. And you're sitting here on your furry ass, because --"

"Because!" Derek snapped, clearly sick of her talking at him. "Because I'm not that guy!" He yelled, rising quickly to his feet to glare down at her. "That guy is smart and funny and charming and..." He paused, clearly thinking before snapping again. "Emotionally supportive!"

"And a total douche." Cora added with a smug smirk. She couldn't believe how stupid he really was. He was all of those things. He was that guy. 'He's just too much of an ass-hat to realise that.' She thought with a mental roll of her eyes.

"Just drop this shit, okay!?" Derek snapped, still glaring down at her.

Cora sighed loudly in defeat and finally nodded. "Fine." She huffed. "But that feeling?" She asked, shooting him a knowing smile when his eyes quickly averted from hers. "It's not gonna go away."

"Shit..." Derek whispered, his expression suddenly on high alert.

Cora smiled brightly, clearly misunderstanding. "Finally. Don't tell me you finally had that cliché romantic epiphany --"

"What? No. Shut up." Derek muttered, looking rather distracted.

Cora finally noticed his tense muscles and frowned in concern. "Derek, what's wrong? Is someone here? I don't hear anything."

"No." Derek muttered. Though, he looked rather troubled.

"Derek, talk to me." Cora said, gently grasping his elbow.

Derek finally snapped out of it. "Something's wrong." He mumbled, shooting his baby sister his own look of concern.

"What'd you mean? Like, with one of the pack?" Cora asked.

Derek nodded.

Cora frowned and closed her eyes to concentrate properly for a few moments.

Derek waited patiently for a few seconds before asking her. "Do you feel it?"

Cora's frowned slowly deepened after a few more moments. "Yeah. It's not too strong, though." She mumbled. "Scott?" She asked as her curious eyes flew open to land on his.

Derek shook his head slightly. "No. I always know when that kid's in trouble." He muttered, shaking his head again, this time in dismay.

Cora chuckled lightly in amusement at that. It was true, after all. Scott seemed to be as much of a trouble magnet as her big brother was.


	21. Chapter 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "What could I do to make Derek really wanna rip my throat out?"

"So, I have a little problem." Silver began as she walked around the teen's bedroom, casually glancing around.

"Oh, yeah?" Stiles asked warily, carefully watching the she wolf's every move. Right now, she was really grateful for her father's late nights.

Silver paused at the teen's dresser, absentmindedly snooping around the teen's belonging's. "Yeah." She replied with a smile as she glanced over her shoulder and back at the younger girl. "Somehow, I don't feel that Derek's in the game."

"And what game would that be?" Stiles asked. She was genuinely intrigued, but she was mainly trying to stall, to keep the Alpha talking until she could think of a plan to escape. Or at least call for help somehow.

Silver's smile widened slightly as she turned to face the teen, but made no other advancing movements. "But somehow, I feel that you're the key there... By the way, did you enjoy my little gift?" She asked, arching a brow and looking rather amused.

Stiles frowned, confused for all of 12 seconds before she finally realised what the hell this were-bitch was on about. "It was you!?" She exclaimed, now glaring at the Alpha. "You made your stupid little pet mind rape me and nearly turn me completely insane!?"

Silver scoffed. "Of course." She replied with a 'duh' expression. "Bo doesn't do anything without my saying so... Sorry, didn't. He didn't do anything without my saying so... I'm still getting used to the past tense there." She added that last part with a bitter glare.

"Hey! It's your own fault! You came to our town and started making your own trouble!" Stiles snapped back. She knew it was a bad idea, but she couldn't help herself. She was so fucking pissed off! "Why the fuck would you do that, anyway? I'm no threat to you and I if it was a gift, like you say, some stupid attempt to make me join your pack or give up personal information about my friends over to you then you just wasted your sorry-ass time... Which you did anyway. So bravo."

Silver's jaw tightened, her eyes burning red as she appeared in front of the teen in an instant.

Stiles shrank back, but only slightly and mostly out of surprise.

"Bo was a sacrifice I was willing to make." Silver stated, now wearing a smug smirk. "Derek saving you was the only answer I was looking for. And now I have it. You're special to him, for some odd reason."

"I'm just a part of the pack. He'd do the same for any of us." Stiles replied, somehow still managing to sound calm. On the surface, anyway. She knew the she wolf could still hear her heart thudding heavily in her chest as clearly as she could hear her pulse ringing in her own ears.

"True." Silver agreed with a contemplative expression. "But there's just something about you, I guess." She whispered, leaning slowly down so that her burning red orbs were level with the teen's. She closed her eyes for a moment and inhaled deeply. Her eyes sprang back open, her lips slowly widening into a Cheshire cat-like grin. "And I think I'm beginning to see what all the fuss is about." She purred.

Stiles heart raced even more and now she was really trying not to panic.

Silver's grin grew even more, if possible as she picked up on the teen's obvious fear. She could almost taste it. "Now... What could I do to make Derek really wanna rip my throat out?" She asked, though, it sounded more like a suggestion.

"Silver," Stiles mumbled, trying not to quiver as she slowly began to back away from the she wolf.

"Shut up, Gamora." Silver snarled. She noticed the teen's completely shocked expression as clearly as she could sense her pain and shot her a cruel smirk.

"H-how do you know my name?" Stiles stuttered, her voice barely above a whisper. Her heart was still racing, but now her chest ache unbearable, too.

Silver cackled, wearing a smug expression. "I do my homework before I go in for my kill." She explained simply. "So, why do you call yourself 'Stiles'?" She asked curiously, quirking a brow.

Somehow, Stiles quickly managed to pull herself back together. "It's not too late, y'know." She muttered.

Silver arched a brow, noticing the swift change of topic. "For coffee? 'Cause that stuff just keeps me awake for hours." She chimed back casually.

"It's not too late to let us help you." Stiles stated as calmly as possible.

"Oh, yeah?" Silver asked, arching her brows again.

"Yes." Stiles nodded. "Look, I know all about you and Peter and the Hale fire."

"Do you now?" Silver sneered, now glaring at the girl.

"Yes." Stiles nodded again, continuing on. "I know all about pain. And I know that you're still hurt and intensely pissed off. But I also know, in my heart, that you're not really an evil person. Trust me, okay? Peter's just the same."

Silver's expression faltered slightly for a moment before her eyes burned bright red once again.

Stiles eyes widened as the she wolf raised a clawed hand and swiped down at her. She yelped in pain, stumbling back a little and grabbed at her now bloody cheek.

Silver smirked. "What'd you feel in your heart now?" She sneered, edging slowly towards the teen.

Stiles didn't know what had come over her, but she kind of liked it. Well, if there weren't any consequences of her actions. She reached up with a tightly curled fist and smacked the she wolf right back with all of her might. And square in the nose, too. She whimpered slightly, then clutching her aching hand.

Silver stumbled back a little, but mostly out of shock. She shook her head slightly, shaking off the bruise already healing and then smirked wickedly over at the wide-eyed teen. "Alright, Gamora! You've got a little fight in you." She cheered with another amused chuckle.

"Don't fucking call me that! No one calls me that! Ever!" Stiles yelled angrily before quickly reaching out to send the she wolf another punch.

Silver's smirk widened as she grabbed the girl's wrist with ease and held in tightly in place. "My turn now." She purred passed her razor-sharp canines.

Stiles eyes widened in horror...

...Lydia groaned quietly, running a hand over her tired face. She hadn't even had time to put any make-up on. 'Stupid Derek.' She thought with a sulk. "So, why am I here at 3:30 in the morning?" She asked casually, though, she was glaring over at Derek.

"To see which one of you idiots are missing." Cora explained simply, wearing a smirk when the other teens glared up at her.

"Who's missing?" Scott asked, perking up considerably.

Derek rolled his eyes at the dim teen. "That's what I sent a text for. To get you all here." He explained slowly and clearly, as if explaining to a toddler.

Scott simply glared up at him.

Cora felt her cellphone vibrate in her pocket and pulled it out quickly. "Peter said he's busy." She announced, reading her uncle's text aloud.

Derek rolled his eyes and nodded in acknowledgement. "Well, at least it's not him... Not that I would be bothered either way." He added that last part, mumbling mostly to himself.

Cora chuckled in amusement.

"I have arrived." Isaac announced as he sauntered out of the elevator. "Why have I arrived?" He asked, glancing over at Derek.

"Yeah. What's going on?" Allison asked, glancing to Derek as well.

"Hey, where's Stiles?" Scott piped up, finally realising the point of this little late night 'pack meeting.'

Derek frowned slightly, too. How had he not noticed until now? 'God, there really is something wrong with me...' He thought bitterly. He glanced around, seeing everyone, but her. Ethan and Danny cuddled up on one end of the couch, Allison and Scott doing the same on the other and Isaac seated uncomfortably in the middle to Cora standing right beside him.

"I'm calling her. Right now." Scott stated as he quickly yanked his cellphone from his pocket and put Stiles number on speed dial. He pressed the cellphone to his ear and waited for 3 rings before the other end of the line answered.

"Sorry, Scott, Gamora can't come to the phone right now..."

Scott's eyes widened as they flew up to Derek's, who shared his horrified expression. "If you hurt her, I will tear you apart, one limb at a fucking time!" Scott roared down into the phone as he shot up to his feet.

"Scott, gimme the phone." Derek told him as he held his hand out, his voice low, but firm. He knew that the kid was going to be reckless and want revenge if anything happened to his best friend; his sister. And Derek could understand that completely. But they had to be careful about this, for Stiles' sake.

Silver chuckled quietly before replying. "I don't think you're in any position to be tossing out silly little threats, pup, do you?" She asked, sounding all too smug.

"I WILL RIP YOUR FUCKING HEART OUT AND EAT IT RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOUR EYES!" Scott roared angrily, storming towards the elevator.

Derek was in front of him in a heartbeat, as well as Cora, who stood beside her big brother for back-up, just in case. She liked Scott, but he really was just a kid, after all. "Scott, give me the fucking phone!" Derek barked, shooting him a stern look. "Now!" He demanded, holding his hand out again.

Silver chuckled knowingly. "That's right, little Alpha -- listen to your know-it-all Beta."

Scott gritted his teeth, but with a defeated huff, he finally handed his cellphone over. He couldn't even think straight right now. So it was probably a good idea.

Derek pressed the phone to his ear before speaking as calmly as he possibly could. "What'd you want?"


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Your what, now?"

"Is she okay?" Allison asked, rising from the couch as soon as Derek had hung up Scott's cellphone. "Derek, is Stiles okay?" She repeated a little more urgently when she noticed the troubled little look on his face.

"I don't know." Derek mumbled, shoving the phone back into Scott's hands.

"You don't know?" Scott asked, shooting the older werewolf a rather sour expression.

"Well, is she alive, at least?" Cora asked, looking as deeply concerned as the huntress.

Derek nodded. "Silver won't do anything drastic. At least, I don't think so..." He added that last part with a deep frown.

"So, what the hell does this bitch want now?" Danny asked, wearing an equally sour look to Scott. Sure, he and Stiles had never been the best of friends, but he'd always liked her anyway. Even if she was really annoying and talkative sometimes. But Danny knew that was just how Stiles was naturally. And they had grown rather close as friends over the last year, too.

"Silver wants me." Derek stated simply. "So, that's what I'm gonna give her." He concluded before walking over to the table and swiping his leather jacket up.

"Well, what can we do?" Lydia asked. "I mean, I assume you have a plan here, sour wolf." She added, arching a suspicious brow at him.

Derek frowned slightly at the nickname, but let it slip for now. There were other, more important matters to deal with beforehand. "No. No plan." He muttered as he made his way over to the elevator. "I'm just gonna go out, find the bitch and --"

"Trade yourself in, like a piece of fucking scrap metal!?" Cora snapped, finally catching on. "No fucking way, Derek!" She barked, glaring dangerously over at her brother.

"Are you fucking kidding me!?" Scott growled. "Are you stupid or just insane!? What makes you think that Silver won't just kill you both before going after the rest of us!?"

Derek paused in front of the elevator and turned around to glare dangerously at the True Alpha. "Just because you're a high and mighty Alpha now, doesn't mean I still can't kick your ass." He threatened, his eyes narrowing at the young werewolf.

Scott simply scoffed loudly. "Just try it." He challenged, his tone low and defiant.

Derek let out a low growl, glaring daggers at the young werewolf.

"Whoa!" Ethan piped up. "Guys, so not helping things right now."

"He's right." Aiden agreed. Hell, he wasn't even that close with Stiles, but she was still pack after all. And pack was important. Well, maybe not the pack he and his brother had first been with. But that was an entirely different (and horrific) story. "We need to band together, not tear each other apart. And that's what Silver wants, because she's got no one to protect her. No pack, no friends. Not like we all have."

Both Derek and Scott managed to calm themselves down. Although, they were both still glaring at one another.

Isaac nodded. "Apart, we're just a bunch of werewolves... Well, mostly anyway..." He then shot Allison, Lydia and Danny a sheepish smile. "But all together, we're pack. We're awesome." He concluded with a wide and rather proud grin.

Aiden gave the younger werewolf a curt nod for agreeing with him. "I hate to say this; but you guys are pretty much unstoppable when you wanna be."

Ethan nodded, wearing a small smirk. "Yeah. Deucalion was actually really worried about taking you guys on."

"And from what he's told me," Danny added, glancing between his boyfriend and the rest of his friends. "For good reason." He added, wearing a similar expression to Isaac.

Again, Scott let out a loud scoff. "Well, that makes me feel a whole lot better." His tone was dripped with sarcasm. Though, he was only half joking.

"Derek, you're not doing this." Cora told him, shooting her big brother a stern expression. "I'll shoot you with Allison's cross-bow myself, if I have to... I'm not losing you again."

Derek stared back at his baby sister for a few moments. Right now, all his instincts were telling him was to run, to find Stiles and protect her. And by the look on Scott's face, he felt exactly the same way. "Fine." He grunted with an aggravated huff. "Scott, what'd you wanna do?"

Scott arched a brow at him, looking slightly surprised that he would even ask for his input. And the others looked rather shocked, too. "Well, naturally, I wanna just find Silver and rip her throat out..."

Derek smirked slightly at that. 'At least someone can say it out loud.' He thought rather bitterly at himself.

"But," Scott continued with a tired sigh and a defeated looking expression. "They're right." He said, motioning to Isaac and Aiden. "We should track her down first, find out where she's keeping Stiles before we do anything... Violent."

Derek simply nodded in agreement. 'Finally, the kid's talking some sense.'

"And how the hell are we gonna do that?" Lydia asked expectantly, arching a brow.

Isaac simply tapped his nose in response, wearing a large grin.

Lydia rolled her eyes. "Yeah, that's just great. And while you lap-dogs are out sniffing trees and humping strangers' legs, Stiles is probably trapped in some dirty basement, getting the shit beaten outta her for not being able to keep her smart-ass mouth shut!" She snapped, glaring between the werewolves.

"She's right." Derek piped up with a nod. "We're just gonna end up wasting time we don't even have."

Lydia huffed, flipping her strawberry-blonde locks out of her face. "Thank you, Derek." She replied snootily. Though, she sent him a curt nod.

"Then what do we do?" Cora asked, glancing between her big brother and the redhead.

"Stiles did a little digging over this Silver chick for us a couple of days ago." Lydia explained with a small smile.

Scott grinned. "That's my girl."

"I thought I was your girl?" Allison asked, wearing a pout.

Scott chuckled. "I can't have two girls?" He asked, pouting back at her.

Allison shot him a playful glare, making the werewolf chuckle.

"Ugh. Get a room." Isaac chirped, forcing playful glare over at the 'sickening' couple.

"Jealous." Danny muttered, causing Isaac to glare at him, while the others chuckled in amusement.

Even Derek had to smirk at that one.

"Children!" Lydia snapped, glaring at the group. "Pay attention! God!" She barked. "Stiles said that for the last week or so, there have been reports of beatings and a couple of disappearances."

"Was is actually Silver or do we have another whack-job running around town?" Scott asked, clearly sceptical.

Lydia shrugged. "Well, Stiles said both the men were sliced up real bad, their throats slit, too and half their fricking face mauled off. So I dunno, seems pretty wolfy to me... Oh, she also mentioned that the first guy was mugged, had his keys and wallet stolen from him. So maybe, if we can find his address, maybe Silver's stupid enough to still be staying there."

"Scott," Derek piped up, catching the redhead's hint. "You should go to Stiles' house. See if you can find what she's dug up already and hopefully we can go from there."

Scott nodded. "Already on it."

"Don't say anything to her father." Derek said. "At least, not yet."

Scott nodded again before grabbing Allison's hand, the both of them then making their way towards the elevator.

"And what the hell do we do until then?" Cora asked, turning to her brother with an expectant look. "Every second we just sit here, Stiles is --"

"Cora!" Derek snapped, now glaring at her. "I know, okay!? But if we all just start attacking this bitch at once, the first thing she'll do is kill Stiles. So, just stop busting my chops about everything."

Lydia arched a brow. "'Bust your chops'?" She asked, grinning in amusement. "Guys, Derek uses slang! He's shallow! Like us!" She chimed with an utterly gleeful expression.

Derek rolled his eyes at the redhead. "Besides, I'm still going in alone."

Cora shot him an incredulous look. "But you said --"

"I lied." Derek cut in, his voice low and firm. "I'm not losing another member of this pack."

"And what about you?" Cora asked, her eyes slightly brimming with tears now. "You're a member of this pack, too." She reminded, her tone almost desperate now. "Look, I know Stiles is your mate, but --"

"Cora!" Derek snapped, shooting her a look of outrage.

Cora's eyes widened slightly when she then realised her little slip of the tongue.

"Your what, now?" Lydia asked, arching both her brows.

"No way!" Aiden exclaimed with an amused chuckle. Clearly, he knew what was going on here.

And so did his twin. "I knew it!" Ethan chimed, grinning over at the older werewolf.

Derek merely glared at the Alpha twins.

Both Danny and Isaac looked as confused as the other. "What's going on?" Danny asked, clueless. "Yeah, what gives?" Isaac asked, looking slightly suspicious as he glanced back to Derek.

"It's nothing." Derek mumbled. "Cora's just an idiot." He grumbled, shooting his sister one more death glare before shuffling back over to the huge window. "Look, I just don't wanna give Silver any more free targets here. I'm trying to protect you. All of you."

"Oh, how noble of you." Cora snipped back. "But in case it slipped your mind; we all have been targeted by a psychotic Alpha. Again."

"Y'know, I kinda like the plan were we just stay here." Aiden joked, trying to lighten the mood a little. Although, it only earned him a glare from the others. Even his girlfriend.

"No." Lydia said. "Stiles is my friend. As much as that pains me to say. But you idiots pulled me into your supernatural bunch of horse shit, which resulted in the complete annihilation of my social life. So, I don't have many friends left. So, we [b]are[/b] gonna get her back. Y'hear that sour wolf?" She snipped, glaring over at him. "We are gonna get her back. All of us. As a stupid pack. So, you can shove your arrogant head up your werewolf ass." She concluded with an all too innocent smile.

Aiden chuckled, the others trying to hide their amused grins. "Well said, baby." He told her, reaching over and laying a quick kiss to her pale, but flawless cheek.

Lydia simply smirked back at her boyfriend. 'He is such a wind-up. And I love it.'

"Yeah." Cora nodded with a small smile. "I like that plan."

Isaac nodded in agreement. "Strength in numbers and all."

"1 is a number." Aiden teased, earning another glare from the redhead.

"Do you wanna sleep on the couch for the next week?" Lydia teased back. Though, she looked deadly serious.

"I'll behave." Aiden mumbled with a sheepish grin. "Promise."

Lydia's smirk merely widened in triumph.

"She's coming for me." Derek said, looking defiant as he finally found his voice again. "I've got a fight coming up. I don't need you getting in the way or distracting me. I've survived this long on my own."

"You're not an Omega, Derek." Peter said, leaning in the elevator doorway. "Hales are never Omegas."

Derek merely rolled his eyes again. 'Oh, joy! Look who's back.' He thought with bitter sarcasm.

"Why're you taking this so personally, anyway?" Lydia asked, shooting him a suspicious look. "She wants all of us either dead or under her stupid thumb... What're you not telling us, sourwolf?"

"Stop calling me that." Derek grunted, shooting her a rather pathetic glare. The truth was; it just reminded him of Stiles. Who wasn't here.

"Oh, Derek, just tell them." Peter huffed as he sauntered over to his ever brooding nephew.

Derek shot him a death glare.

"Tell us what?" Isaac asked, glancing up at his ex-Alpha curiously.

Derek's jaw tightened as he turned to glare out of the grimy window instead.

"Derek," Peter said, his voice a little sterner. "I'm sorry, but if you just let your emotions control you right now, one of you will certainly wind up dead anyway. You need to let your pack help you with this." He pointed out, trying to reason with the younger werewolf. After all, he still cared for his nephew. Even after he'd slit his throat and killed him. Which, Peter admitted, he deserved.

"Yeah, well, that's what Silver wants." Derek concluded, still glaring out of the window.

"Well... That's just not good enough... And you know it." Peter stated, slightly deflated as he turned away in disappointment.

"If you don't tell them, I will." Cora promised rather than threatened.

"Oh, for crying out loud!" Lydia snapped, glaring at all 3 Hales. "Tell us what!?"


	23. Chapter 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I think we'll try sharp for a little while."

Stiles was sore. Stiles was achy. But most of all, Stiles was tired. Stiles wanted to go home. Stiles wanted to see her father, to see Scott. Hell, she even wanted to see that infamous, but sexy scowl on sour wolf's face.

Stiles was bound tightly by thick ropes and tied to a wooden chair in this rather lavish apartment's kitchenette. Her eyes (which she were sure were as bruised as the rest of her body) were heavy as she tried to keep them open, keep them focussed. Her jaw ached the most, though, the dirty rag gagging her just as tightly as her binds. But what pissed Stiles off the most was that her favourite sweater was almost torn to shreds and stained with her own blood.

In front of the beaten up teen was Silver, pacing boredly back and forth. She paused suddenly, glancing down at the teen with a wicked grin. She then leaped back over to the girl, jumping into her lap and making sure to land as hard as possible on top of her aching, bloody legs.

Stiles let out a loud, but muffled scream, which turned into a low growl as she forced a defiant glare up at the cruel she wolf.

Silver chuckled, clearly highly amused. She then leaned her face down slowly and gently licked at the sticky blood on the teen's forehead. "Mmmm." She purred, shooting the girl a deep, hungry sort of look.

Stiles continued to glare up at the Alpha, her breathing ragged.

Silver's grin widened. "All these little cuts and bruises," She said. "Well, they just bring out the mother in me."

Stiles continued to glare as she tried to keep her drooping eyes open.

Silver glared at the dizzy teen, noticing her eyes flicker slightly. "Oh, come on, Gamora!" She chimed, slapping the teen's face a few times.

Stiles grunted, forcing her glare still.

"Now don't you go passing out on me already. We haven't even got started yet, sweetie-pie." Silver chimed, now grinning like a Cheshire cat. "Otherwise, this is all just gonna be over too fast and you'll be dead and I'll be... Bored."

Stiles growled loudly, struggling against the ropes with what little strength she still had left.

"Is that all you've got, Gamora?" Silver taunted, chuckling right in the teen bruised face. "Come on! Where is that English stiff upper lip that your mother used to have!?"

Stiles let out another growl, the loudest yet as she shot the Alpha a murderous glare. How dare this bitch even mention her mother!

Silver merely chuckled before slowly sliding off of the teen's lap. "Now, we've only done one of the five basic torture groups." She began casually, pacing up and down in front of the teen once again. "We've already covered blunt..." She said, grinning as she cracked her knuckles. "So, that just leaves sharp, cold, hot and loud."

Stiles continued to glare up at the she wolf. Though, her pulse was ringing even louder in her ears now. And by the smug smirk on this were-bitch's face, she could hear it just as clearly.

"Do you have a preference, Gamora?" Silver asked, shooting the teen an all too sweet grin.

Stiles took a deep breath through her nose before giving the Alpha a slight nod.

Silver arched a brow, looking somewhere between surprised and impressed. "Well, that's wonderful!" She chimed, reaching forward and removing the gag from the teen's mouth (as roughly as possible.)

Stiles instantly took a deep breath through her mouth, trying to catch her breath and trying not to have a fucking panic attack.

Silver smiled gleefully. "It's always better when there's audience participation." She said as she slowly knelt down in front of the teen. "May I take your preference, Master?" She purred, wearing another taunting smirk.

Stiles coughed a few times, throwing up a few spots of blood before spitting them out on the floor beside her. She then slowly turned her glazed over orbs back to the Alpha. "Silver," She rasped. "I know how much you loved Peter. I know how much you loved the Hales. And I know how much you're still hurting over what happened."

Silver glared up at the teen, but let her continue.

"I do my own homework." Stiles said, shooting the she wolf a tired, but knowing smile. "I know the real you." She whispered softly when she noticed Silver's expression falter slightly. "And even if you do kill me, I just want you to know one thing;"

Silver leaned slowly closer, looking both intrigued and yet annoyed. "And what's that, lover?" She mumbled through her own aching throat.

"You," Stiles whispered, slowly leaning closer. "Are a piece of shi --"

Silver growled, instantly grabbing the dirty rag and shoving it roughly back into the teen's mouth. "You should talk, huh!?" She snapped, now towering over the teen with a death glare.

Stiles choked slightly, trying to adjust to breathing through her nose once more. She then slowly glanced up at the Alpha and shot her a smug smirk of her own.

Silver's eyes narrowed, but she finally managed to calm herself after a couple of seconds. "Well, I guess I'll just have to try a little harder to impress you." She chided, shooting the teen another wicked grin.

Stiles ignored her racing heart as she shot the she wolf another defiant glare.

Silver chuckled quietly. She then slowly walked over to one of the kitchen counters, pulling one of the drawers open and producing a large and very sharp-looking knife. "Hmm." She purred, slowly turning back to the wide-eyed teen with another wicked grin. "I think we'll try sharp for a little while."


	24. Chapter 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You ready to play now?"

"What else did you manage to find?" Derek asked as he followed the two teenagers back into his loft.

"Well, Stiles already did most of the work for us. She's been a busy little beaver these passed few days." Scott said, wearing a proud little grin.

"Okay," Allison pulled out a large map from her bag and rolled it out over the large table. "So, on Monday -- the day Silver arrived in Beacon Hills, I'm guessing -- a guy was brutally beaten, his wallet and car were also stolen. But he's still alive and is still in the hospital." She explained as she pulled out a few printed out papers she'd taken from Stiles bedroom and placing them down on the table as well. "The next day, four streets over is a restaurant," She said, pausing to point to the location on the map.

Derek stood beside the huntress, staring down at the map and listening to her every word.

Scott stood the other side of his girlfriend, doing the same. There was no way he was going to let this bitch take his best friend from him; his soul sister -- as Stiles had always called herself.

"Where there had a major knock-down drag-out." Allison continued. "And then here," She stated, pointing to another nearby location on the map -- all spots which had already been circled in red by Stiles. "Another guy ran into something he referred to in Police reports as; 'the bitch from Hell,'"

Scott couldn't help smirking at that part.

Derek was slightly amused, too. Though, he didn't let it show. He just wanted to see Stiles, to know that she was still alive. And he didn't know what the fuck he was going to do if she wasn't...

"Who sent him home with a large group of paramedics." Allison carried on. "And that was just 2 days ago."

"Well, now we know why she wanted to keep us busy with Stiles little mind-reading hoax." Scott retorted bitterly.

Allison nodded, her expression rather glum. She just hoped that Stiles was really okay. She knew how much the nerdy girl meant to Scott and to most of the pack, but she and Stiles had grown very close over those months were she and Scott had no longer been together. Stiles didn't ever judge her or anyone else for that matter.

"This was the first incident?" Derek asked, pointing to the first location the huntress had pointed out.

Allison simply nodded back in response.

"Did she take his keys as well as the money and the car?" Derek asked.

"Yeah." Allison replied with another nod.

Derek nodded in acknowledgement. "And he's still in the hospital?"

"Yeah. Stiles and Lydia were gonna go down and talk to him today, but... Y'know." Allison replied sadly.

"Yeah. My mom was gonna help us out with that." Scott added, wearing the same gloomy expression his girlfriend wore.

Derek sighed tiredly and nodded in response. "And what's his address?"

...Silver was perched on the window seal, glancing up to the bright sunlight. Her eyes then drifted down to the large and blood-stained butcher's knife in her hand. Slowly, she loosened her hold and then watched the knife slip from her grasp, watching it fall down from the second story height and clattering loudly onto the concrete in the alleyway bellow.

After a few more minutes of just thinking to herself and taking a little break from her torture session, Silver slid back into the apartment. "Mmm, that was refreshing. Such a nice sunny, but cold day, huh?" She chirped lightly.

Stiles could still hear the were-bitch and beneath her heavy and blackened eyes, she could still see the blurred outline of her. However, she didn't answer. Not that she could with this filthy rag in her mouth. 'Ugh, I can't believe at a time like this, I'm more worried about catching something!' She thought bitterly.

"Feeling a little cold? Well, maybe we should warm the place up a little, huh?" Silver chimed sweetly when she noticed the teen shiver against her restraints.

Stiles simply replied with a glare, even though it hurt to move her face. Or any part of her body for that matter.

Silver responded with a small chuckle, clearly very amused. "Say, do you ever wonder how if things were different? I mean, what if your weren't Derek's, but the little redhead or that Argent girl was instead." She chuckled again to herself as she sauntered slowly over to the girl. "Huh! Gamora? Do you ever think about that kind of stuff? Fate?"

Stiles simply continued to glare as best defiantly back up at the she Alpha, unable to do much else. 'What the hell is this stupid bitch talking about!?' She thought, feeling somewhere between annoyed and utterly confused.

Silver's grin widened as she slowly leaned down so that their faces were level. "I don't. We make our own fate... Maybe I should just kill you right now, instead. He'd come for you either way, so it doesn't actually matter to me."

Stiles heart began to raise violently once again and though she knew the bitch could hear clearly, she somehow managed to keep her calm, yet defiant exterior.

"I mean, not that any of this your fault." Silver continued. "And since I am actually about to kill you, this will be the last chance we have to unload on each other." She added with a cruel smirk. "So, I kinda feel like this is my civic duty and the least I could do to tell you; you're bound to Derek whether you like it or not, so if I kill you; his true mate, he'll truly have nothing left."

'H-his... What?' Stiles eyes widened this time, causing her to wince immediately at the stinging pain shooting throughout her entire face.

Silver watched the girl's reaction intently, her smirk then slowly widening even more. Her suspicions were now confirmed. "Ah, so he hasn't even told you." She noted with a smug look of observation. "Face it, Gamora, you're nothing. Not even your wolf wants you." She reached forward, roughly pulling the gag from the girl's mouth. "Y'know what? I think I wanna hear you scream." She sneered.

Stiles sucked in a few deep breaths before forcing her darkened glare back onto the were-bitch. "You... Never... Will." She whispered breathlessly, though, her eyes held a passionate hatred.

Silver simply smirked. "Admit it, Gamora -- the Hale boys have always had a thing for me." She purred low and her expression clearly taunting.

Stiles didn't answer this time, not even bothering to give the were-bitch the satisfaction.

Silver let out a defeated little sigh before shaking her head. She then froze for a moment, her keen hearing picking up the sound of heavy footsteps approaching quickly. "Finally." She muttered before slowly turning around just in time to see the front door to the lavish apartment burst open, literally flying off the hinges.

Stiles had never been so happy to see her sour wolf and smiled weakly to herself, realising she was no longer alone. 'Wait -- MY sourwolf!?' She frowned slightly, feeling confused again at that thought.

Silver was behind Stiles' chair in a heartbeat with a clawed hand already rapped tightly around the girl's throat. "Well, it's about time, Beta-boy!" She cheered, shooting him a wicked smirk. "You ready to play now?" She teased, tightening her grip around the girl's throat a little more.

Derek tried to ignore the dull aching in his chest at the sight of Stiles' battered and blood-stained form, but it was very distracting. 'Damn, I shoulda waited for Scott...'

Stiles lifted her gaze, her vision finally focussing for the first time in the last 24 hours.

Derek's jaw clenched, his eyes flashing to their electric blue. "I'm ready, bitch. Let's get this over with."


	25. Chapter 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Get in the game."

Silver stood behind Stiles battered form still bound to the chair, a clawed hand grasping tightly at the teen's throat. Her eyes burned bright red as she glared back over at the Beta's electric blues. "Okay, so you showed finally showed up." She nodded. "But how do I know that your heart is really in this?" She asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

Stiles held as still as she possibly could, feeling the were-bitch's claw pricking into her skin and drawing tiny pools of blood. Although, her half-lidded eyes were glued to the werewolf in front of her.

"I mean," Silver grinned. "If I just kill her right now --" She paused, gripping the girl's throat tighter for emphasis.

Stiles whimpered slightly, but forced herself to stay calm, somehow.

Derek let out a low, threatening growl. He took an automatic step towards Stiles, but instantly forced himself to stop when the Alpha's grasp tightened around her throat a little more.

Silver's grin widened, noticing the Beta's silent distress. "-- Would it actually help?" She asked, shooting him a genuinely curious look. "Or would it just be really funny?" She added with an amused little chuckle.

"You think I don't know what you're really after here!?" Derek snarled. "I do." He told her with a glare.

Silver rolled her eyes. "Okay, so you caught me -- you're stupid little pack of unruly teenagers don't interest me in the slightest. But you, well, you, I have to kill. Orders and all... And sweet, little Gamora here is just for the fun of it. And to make you hurt, of course." She smirked, using her free hand to pinch hard at the girl's bruised face.

Stiles winced slightly, her heart racing quicker by the minute. 'Seriously, how have I not had a panic attack yet!?' She thought, momentarily astounded before feeling terrified again.

"This isn't about Stiles." Derek growled, slowly edging closer as he spoke. "This is about you and I."

"No, baby. Gamora is pack-back after what your whore of a mother did to my father." Silver growled back.

"Pay-back?" Derek asked, arching an amused brow. "But I thought you liked the way you've turned out." He told her, his voice clearly condescending.

Silver glared darkly back at him.

"By the way," Derek chirped. "Out of curiosity, how much am I worth dead?"

"15 grand, plus expenses." Silver replied with a smug smirk.

Derek scoffed, looking completely offended. "You're kidding." He grumbled.

Silver chuckled in amusement. "Hey, I'm young." She chimed back. "I'm willing to work my way up the ladder. Just like I did when I finally became an Alpha." She added with a wicked smirk. "I want. I take. I have. That's how it goes."

Derek snorted this time. "You feel young? Do you, Silver?" He asked seriously and shooting her a curious expression. "'Cause to be honest, you're already looking pretty worn out to me." He added with a smirk just as cruel as her own.

Silver's red orbs burned brighter, her canines gritting as she muffled down a low growl. She contemplated between just killing him right then and there, but she still wanted to make the bastard suffer.

In the werewolves distraction, Stiles finally took her opportunity by throwing herself to the side, causing the chair to topple down with her.

Silver snarled, reaching for the teen that had suddenly escaped her bloody clutches.

And it was then that Derek immediately sprung into action. He leaped towards the Alpha, sending a hard kick to her chest and sending her flying in the process. As Silver landed on the kitchen table, smashing it to pieces, Derek stalked after her. Silver leaped back to her feet, her claws at the ready as she went in for a swipe. Derek managed to dodge her attacks before tackling her to the floor as slicing his own clawed hands at her face.

Silver snarled loudly as she felt the stream of blood running down her face. She reached up and grabbed a hold of his wrists and then throwing him effortlessly from her. "Is that all you've got, sourwolf!?" She snipped with a smug grin as she rose from her feet. She stalked over to the Beta before he could raise back to his own feet and grabbed his by the throat. "Get in the game." She sneered before tossing him again.

Derek flew across the apartment, his back denting the brick wall of the kitchen as he slumped to the floor.

Stiles continued to use the werewolves distraction to escape. Luckily, she landed in the broken shards of glass from the picture frames the were-bitch had used to cut her. After a lot of struggling and wriggling, she finally managed to grab a large enough piece of glass.

"You done already, Derek?" Silver taunted as she slowly sauntered over to him.

Derek shot her deadly glare before slowly pulling his weary form back up. "Not even." He spat out.

"Give it up, Derek." Silver said with a roll of her eyes. "You can't beat me. I'm an Alpha." She stated, shooting him a 'duh' look. "You've got nothing." As those last words flowed passed her lips, something sharp suddenly pierced through her right shoulder. The she wolf let out a loud howl of pain, stumbling back a few steps. Her red and angry orbs darted to her new wound, her sight setting on the arrow protruding from her now bloody flesh. Quickly, she reached a hand up and yanked the arrow out with a loud whimper.

Stiles was still trying not to panic as she struggled to saw through her bound wrists with the small shard of glass.

Derek's orbs snapped up towards the open doorway of the apartment and smiled to himself when he saw who had come to his rescue.

Allison slowly lowered her bow with a small smirk hanging off the corners of her lips.

Scott stood right beside his huntress girlfriend, his orbs darkening considerably as he took in the scene before him. His gaze drifted between his battered friends before landing on the 'bitch-wolf' -- as Lydia liked to call her. "He's got us." He stated, his voice calm, but incredibly low.

With an irritated snarl, Silver threw the arrow stained in her blood to the floor. And thankfully for the she wolf, she could already feel her broken skin healing. "Wonderful." She sneered. "An Alpha with pup's clothing and a rookie hunter with a bad aim."

Scott let out a low growl, his eyes burning their usual bright golden colour. He felt his claws piercing through his fingertips and his teeth sharpening as he took an angry step towards the she wolf. "I really don't like killing people. But that doesn't matter right now, 'cause you don't qualify."

Silver shot the younger Alpha a mocking bashful look. "Why, thank you." She chirped sweetly, pretending to fan her so-called flush face.

Scott's golden orbs narrowed, his canines gritting angrily. He was literally just a few moments away from ripping this bitch to shreds. He meant what he had said; he really didn't like killing, well, anything. Well, unless he had his PS3 controller in his hands. But that wasn't the case now. This 'were-cunt' (as he liked to think of her, as of a few moments ago) had taken something very precious to him and she had nearly taken that forever. He was sure that if they hadn't turned up in time tonight, this bitch would surely have ended Stiles' life. And that was something he just couldn't let go unjust. She would pay. With her life. Even if he had to end it himself.

"You're outnumbered, Silver." Derek said, slowly rising from his slump against the kitchen wall. "It's over. Give it up." He added, shooting her a mocking smirk.

Silver merely snorted, looking incredibly amused. "Give it up?" She asked, arching a humorous brow. "Why? Because you and your lil' pups are gonna make me pay?" She scoffed. "Bring it!" She snarled before sending a hard kick to the Beta's chest.

Again, Derek went sailing back, crashing into the kitchen wall once more.

"Help Stiles." Scott said, his bright orbs still trained on the she wolf.

Silver grinned innocently. "Ask me nicely." She purred.

Scott smirked back at the she Alpha. "I wasn't talking to you." He told her.

Allison's eyes finally widened slightly in realisation. "Oh, right! You were talking to me!" She chimed before darting towards the other teen girl.

Silver growled in anger, reaching for the huntress as she rushed passed her.

Instantly, Scott lunged for the other Alpha, managing to barge her roughly out of the way.

Allison ignored everything else around her. Right now, her first priority for getting Stiles the fuck out of here and away from that bitch. Reaching Stiles, she placed her bow on the ground and knelt down beside the older girl. She slipped a hand into her back pocket, pulling out a small switch-blade and then proceeded to cut the rope binding the battered teen to the equally batter wooden chair.

"A-Allison?" Stiles mumbled, her voice very weak and quiet.

Allison forced on a smile as she tossed the rope aside. "Yeah, it's me, Stiles." She confirmed. She quickly picked her bow up, hooking onto the clip on her back before reaching back down for the battered teen. "Come on," She said, helping Stiles sit up. "Let's get you outta here." She wanted to keep talk to Stiles, to keep her awake.

"Stiles!" Lydia screeched, suddenly appearing in the open doorway. Her eyes widened as they darted between the three werewolves throwing each other violently around the apartment to the huntress, helping the battered teen carefully to her bare and bloody feet.

In the next moment, Aiden appeared behind his girlfriend, his eyes widening, too, when he took in the scene. "The fuck!?" He barked, watching as Silver threw both Derek and Scott across the room.

"We're here!" Isaac announced, barging passed the other two.

"Derek!" Cora yelled frantically, her eyes already burning and her claws at the ready as she barged through after Isaac.

"The hell's going on!?" Ethan roared, following after Cora.

"Help Allison and then get the fuck outta here." Aiden told the redhead.

Eyes still wide, Lydia merely forced a quick nod before darting for the girls. Taking Stiles other arm and placing it around her shoulders, the three girls then made their way out of the apartment as quickly and as danger-free as possible.

Silver snarled as Derek punched her in the face, followed by a kick to the back of the legs from Ethan. And then when she tried to get back up, Aiden appeared behind her and with a smirk, copied his brother's actions by kicking the back of her legs and sending her back to her knees. "Oh, so now you're [b]all[/b] ganging up on me?" She asked, her voice dripping with bitter sarcasm.

Isaac reached out to punch her in the face after seeing what the bitch had done to Stiles. However, it seemed he wasn't quick enough and with one swift motion, she had grabbed his wrist and snapped it. Isaac let out a loud yell, followed by an even louder and angry growl as he clutched his broken limb.

Taking the she Alpha's flanks, the Hale siblings swiped their claws down on her, drawing lines of blood all over her flesh. Aiden and Ethan smirked, coming up behind her in unison and grabbing her arms to hold her in her place.

Silver snarled loudly, but only to cover up her wincing instead. "You can kill me, but it won't matter!" She sneered, glaring up at Derek and Scott, who were now standing in front of her, glaring down at her, as were the rest of the pack, who stood in a perfect circle, caging her in.

"Now who's got nothing?" Derek asked, shooting her a bitter smirk.

Silver merely glared back up at him. "I have Him." She stated with a look of triumph. "And He will kill you all if you kill me." She added with a toothy and rather bloody smirk.

"Does 'He' have a name?" Scott asked, shooting her an almost humorous expression.

Silver choked out a light chuckle, but this time, couldn't help wincing in pain as the Alpha twins' claws dug deeper into her arms, drawing yet even more blood from her. "He has many names." She stated, panting rather heavily now. She was growing weak from all of the blood lost. And hungry...

Derek rolled his eyes, clearly less than impressed by her mind games. "Well, what do you call him?" He asked, arching an expectant brow at her.

Silver smiled sweetly. "Daddy."


	26. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Kiss her."

"This is fucking ridiculous!" Scott snapped, flailing his arms angrily. "I mean, what the fuck are they doing? Having tea and crumpets, while they chat over the good ol' times!?" He was simply outraged.

"Yeah, I mean, I don't usually agree with McCall --" Aiden said. "-- But we should have just killed the bitch when we had the chance."

"Yeah..." Cora nodded in agreement also. "So why didn't we?" She asked, glancing over to her big brother.

Derek, who up until now, had been standing silently by the large window in his loft, slowly turned to face the rest of his pack -- well, minus the girls. "Because it's not just Silver that we have to worry about anymore. She said that she's working for someone. She could be lying, but I don't wanna take any chances." He explained, giving his baby sister a stern look.

Cora simply rolled her eyes, but nodded. She figured that was smart. And she knew that her big brother always liked to be on the very top of his game.

"I don't give a fuck!" Scott snapped. "She almost killed Stiles tonight! I want the werecunt to pay!"

Aiden arched a brow and bit back an amused smirk, seemingly impressed with the younger werewolf's potty mouth.

"Fuck this!" Scott growled, finally hauling himself up from one of the couches and marching over to the elevator.

Derek was in front of him within a flash. "Where'd you think you're going?" He asked in a low tone as he narrowed his eyes down at the Alpha pup'.

Scott glared back up at the older werewolf in utter defiance. "I'm going to teach that bitch a lesson."

"Uh, no, you're not." Derek grunted back.

"Get the fuck out of my way!" Scott growled, trying to shove passed.

Derek shoved him back. "Don't be an idiot!" He snapped, now glaring back.

"What the fuck is wrong with you!?" Scott roared. "You think I'm fucking stupid!? I know, Derek."

"You don't know anything." Derek snarled before he could really control himself.

Scott scoffed loudly as the others simply watched in both shock and a little confusion. "No?" He arched a brow, smirking smugly. "I know because of Allison... It was bad enough that Silver went after Stiles; my best friend, my sister..." He croaked, feeling an aching lump forming in the back of his throat. "But if she'd gone after Allison... My mate... I don't know what I would've done."

Derek simply stared back at the pup', his orbs flickering briefly over at the others, who were still watching. He then turned on his heel and headed towards the elevator.

Scott smiled in triumph, quickly following after him.

Derek quickly closed the metal grating before the pup' could enter.

"What the hell, Derek!?" Scott barked, glaring at him through the thin, iron bars.

Derek scowled back at him. "I'm gonna check up on Stiles." He said. "And you're gonna stay the fuck right here until I say otherwise or else."

Scott scoffed loudly again. "Or else, what?" He challenged, narrowing his eyes.

"Or else I'm gonna dip the end of my shoe in wolfsbane, shove it up your werewolf ass and wear you like a slipper." Derek retorted rather calmly before pressing the elevator button.

Aiden snorted loudly in amusement. "A very creative one, I'll give him that."

Scott simply glared over at him, clearly not amused at all...

...Lydia let out a glum little sigh as she perched on the end of Allison's bed.

Allison stood at the other end of the bed -- which was currently occupied by Stiles' slumbering form. Allison glanced over at the redhead. "You okay?" She asked softly.

Lydia forced a small smile and nodded. "Kinda hard for me to say this, 'cause I'm the queen B,"

Allison chuckled softly. "But?" She urged gently.

Lydia let out another glum sigh as her orbs darted back to the pale and bruised face of the girl lying before her. "But... I never realised important Stilinski really was to us... To me."

Allison smiled and nodded. "Yeah. Me, neither, really." She admitted. "I guess we take a lot of things for granted. People, too." She added with a tired shrug.

Lydia simply nodded and a moment later, there was a couple of soft knocks on the huntress' bedroom door. Both girls glanced up to see Chris (Allison's father and practically the best hunter around for decades) entered slowly, followed closely by Derek.

"How's she doing?" Chris asked, his voice low and soft so as to not disturb the poor slumbering girl. He shuffled slowly over to the bed, standing beside his daughter. As he glanced down at Stiles, he couldn't help feeling his chest ache slightly. What if that had been Allison?

"I don't think she had any broken bones." Lydia explained. "I mean, she's been battered up real good, but I don't really know about her mental state. She's been sleeping since we got her here. And I don't think there's any severe head trauma. So, I say that her sleeping off the worst of the pain is a good thing."

Derek stood at the foot of the bed, beside the redhead. "How bad are her wounds?" He asked, voice barely above a whisper and his eyes glued to her face (the only part of her body showing from under the many blankets.)

"A couple of slightly cracked ribs." Lydia replied. "And a lot of cuts and bruises. Some of the cuts are a little deep, but nothing life threatening. I patched her up as best I could."

Derek let out a small breath of relief, managing a nod. "Thank you." He uttered, not even noticing he had said it.

Lydia smiled up at the werewolf. She glanced back at Stiles briefly before glancing at the two Argents. She stood slowly, nudging her head towards the door as a hint.

Chris nodded, gently grabbing his daughter's hand. "I told her father that she's staying here with Allison and Lydia tonight." He told the werewolf.

Derek nodded, though, barely. His gaze still glued to Stiles, he stood there, frozen for a few moments.

Chris then ushered the two girls as well as himself out of the room, closing the door quietly behind him.

After a few more moments, Derek finally managed to snap out of his stupor. Slowly, he slid his leather jacket off and placed it on her desk chair. He then slowly shuffled back of to the small queen sized bed and sat down beside her slumbering form. For a few more moments, he simply stared down at her, now with a small frown across his brow. His frown only deepened then when her own brow began to crease, her eyes screwing shut even tighter. He then felt a small, but sharp pain through his chest and without thinking, he reached out and placed a warm hand over her cheek. He winced slightly as he watched the tiny black veins begin to creep slowly up his arm.

At the odd, but comforting sensation, Stiles' entire body jerked as she then bolted up right, the blankets falling to her waist and exposing her tiny tank top. She shivered automatically, feeling a little cold at the loss of warmth. Her eyes were wide as she glanced around the room, her gaze then finally settling on the werewolf sitting beside her.

Derek's own eyes were wide as he stared at her in slight shock. But he was pleasantly surprised that it had been him she had woken up to. "It's okay. You're safe." He rasped, gulping down the aching lump forming in the back of his throat as he took in the rest of her stitched up wounds and large purple bruises.

Stiles nodded in response as she took a few seconds to calm her breathing. She then winced slightly as she realised just how much pain she was in. To put it nicely; she felt like her entire body had been dipped in acid and then chewed up and shat back out by pigs.

Derek frowned. He never really noticed until recently that he really didn't like seeing her in pain. "I can take the pain away." He muttered, slowly reaching out to her again. And he would have. Not just a little. He didn't care if it would have killed him or not. He'd done it for Cora once before and he was more than willing to do it for Her.

Stiles shook her head, but smiled slightly at the gesture.

Derek's frown only deepened at that. "Why not?" He asked, mentally cursing himself for sounding like such a brat. He might have even pouted a little, too.

Stiles' smile grew slightly, though, there was a slightly confused expression in her eyes. Those bright amber orbs that he could just lose himself in forever and not even give a damn. "I've been through worse." She whispered. She knew that there was no way her vocal chords worked right now. She needed food. But most of all, she really fricking needed a root beer right now.

"That's not the point." Derek told her, wearing a slight scowl.

Stiles laughed silently. "Yeah, I know. But my pain is my own... It's what makes me human, dude."

Derek rolled his eyes. "Don't call me that." He snipped pathetically, causing her to grin and causing his resolve to crumble all the more.

"Thank you." Stiles whispered, sending him a rather shy smile. "For saving me..."

Derek simply smiled back, unable to do much else.

"It's usually Scott saving my ass, but lately..." Stiles shot him an odd look. "You just seem to be in the right place at the right time."

Derek scoffed at that, glaring slightly to himself. "Yeah, well, if that were true then I would have been there to stop her from taking you in the first place." He muttered.

Stiles rolled her eyes at that. "I'm still alive -- aren't I?" She asked, shooting him a pointed look.

"How are you so calm about this!?" Derek snapped, now glaring at her.

Stiles simply stared at him, clearly taken aback by his angry outburst.

"That bitch nearly killed you! Do you understand that!?" Derek barked.

Stiles glared back at him now. "I nearly get killed on a regular basis! We all do!" She snapped back, no longer caring if her throat ached from raising her voice.

"That's not the fucking point!" Derek snapped.

Stiles scoffed loudly. "Then what is the fucking point!? Huh!? 'Cause I'm sick of you always pushing me around and making me act like your little bitch monkey! I'm done with it! I'm done with all of your shit! I've already been through hell with your new werebitch girlfriend tonight and I'll be fucked if I'm gonna go through that shit again with your sourwolf ass! Get the fuck out! Now!" She yelled, her voice rising with every word darting out of her mouth. She really didn't know why she was so annoyed, she just was. And she really was sick of Derek Hale treating her like a fricking bell-boy! 'I mean, really!? What the frig is his problem with me!? Always me!' She thought with an angry glare.

Derek stared back at her for a few moments, his eyes widened in shock. "Stiles --"

"Leave!" Stiles roared. She could feel her chest tightening now and she knew that could only mean one thing: she was having a panic attack. 'Well, it's about damn time, too.' She thought with bitter sarcasm. She began to wheeze heavily, trying to pull herself forward so that she could breath easier.

Derek could feel his own heart begin to race along with hers. "Shit, Stiles," He quickly hopped on the bed, kneeling in front of her and held her up gently by the shoulders. "It's okay. Just breath. You're okay." He whispered, looking her in the eye.

"D-Derek..." Stiles gasped in large amounts of air, only making things worse for herself. By now, her anger had vanished completely, panic and slight terror taking its place. Her arms flew up, her hands gripping his forearms tightly, her nails digging into his skin slightly, though, he barely seemed to notice. "C-can't..." She gasped loudly, her eyes widening in fright. 'Come on, Stiles. This isn't real. You know this isn't real. You're not gonna die.' She repeated that mentally, like she always had and it had always seemed to work. Until now, anyway.

"Stiles, look at me." Derek demanded gently.

Stiles did as she was told, forcing her gaze back to his. And oddly enough, his calm blue orbs seemed to calm her in return. Though, only a little.

"Breathe with me." Derek told her. He then took a few long and deep breaths, his eyes boring into hers.

Stiles tried to copy him, but failed miserably. "C-can't..." She repeated, still gasping for air.

Derek began to panic himself a little now. If she didn't calm down soon, she could maybe have a heart attack -- he just didn't know. And that scared the shit out of him.

"Kiss her."

Derek's orbs snapped over to the redhead, who was standing in the doorway. "What!?" He snapped, glaring back at her. How had he not heard her approach? Although, he was a little distracted.

Lydia rolled her eyes, though, smiled softly. "Trust me. Just kiss her." She told him.

Derek glanced back at Stiles, who was still trying to calm her breathing down, while gripping onto him like her life depended on it.

"And no tongues." Lydia teased, biting back a smirk.

Derek flashed a brief glare over his shoulder at her again, his full attention then immediately back to Stiles. "Don't hit me for this." He murmured with a slight frown. And then, with no further warning, he leaned forward, pressing his lips over hers.

Stiles eyes widened immediately as she sucked in a sharp breath. She froze for a moment as he pressed his mouth a little harder against her own, moving his lips slowly over her own.

Lydia smiled triumphantly to herself before leaving the room again, closing the door quietly behind her. 'Well, that's one way to skin a wolf.' She thought with a smirk as she bounded off back down the stairs.

After another moment, Stiles' eyes automatically closed, her entire body leaning closer to his without even realising.

And Derek didn't seem to mind this. In fact, he seemed to a little lean closer, too. His hands slowly slipped from her shoulders, using one arm to support his weight as he leant towards her. His other hand automatically reached up, resting on her cheek, rubbing his thumb gently against her soft flesh.

Stiles still felt far from calm, her heart was still racing wildly, but it was more from the excitement she felt suddenly flaring throughout her entire body. This was definitely better than that one time she made out with Lydia, she thought. But at least she no longer felt like she was fucking suffocating. Instead, now she just felt like her entire chest was going to explode.

Derek mentally cursed himself when her hands flew to the back of his neck, pulling him even closer and causing him to let slip a small, but clearly pleasurable groan at the small contact. "Stiles," He whispered, slowly pulling his lips from hers, his hand slowly slipping from her face and looked into her bright chocolate-amber orbs. He was doomed, he thought, doomed for eternity. And oddly, he couldn't have felt happier in that moment for it. She was his, for eternity, as he was hers. He just didn't know how the fuck to tell her that. Well, not without scaring the shit out of her or at the very least, making her pick up the nearest blunt object and smack him in the face with it. Both of which he would rather never have to happen.

Stiles stared back at him, unable to look away, even when she could feel her cheeks heavily flushing. "Sorry." She whispered back. She finally tore her eyes from his, averting her gaze to her hands as she let them quickly slip from his neck.

Derek swallowed quietly, still feeling his heart racing painfully in his chest. "Are you okay?" He asked, deciding to not embarrass her. Or him, for that matter.

Stiles orbs flickered back to his and though she could still feel herself blushing ridiculously, she managed to answer without sounding like a complete fool. "Yeah... Thank you." She mumbled, shooting him a small smile before averting her gaze to her fiddling fingers.

Derek fought back a disappointed frown and nodded in response. Honestly, what had he been expecting other than a thank you? It's not as if she knew that he had kissed her for a little more reason than just to calm her down. "I should go." He slowly rose from the bed, missing a brief frown from her.

Stiles watched him walk over to her desk and pull on his usual leather jacket. "Are you okay?" She mumbled, shooting him a curious look.

Derek turned to face her a nodded. "I'm always okay." He told her, forcing a small smile for emphasis.

Stiles stared blankly back at him. Somehow, she didn't quite believe him. Though, she let it slide with a small shrug. "Whatever you say, sourwolf." She muttered, averting her awkward gaze from his once again.

Derek frowned to himself, his jaw clenching slightly as he felt that unbearable aching pain in his chest again. She was upset. He knew it. He could practically smell it on her. But he just didn't know why. "I'll come check on you in the morning." He told her before slowly heading towards the bedroom door.

"Right." Stiles murmured, nodding to herself. She watched him shoot her one last hint of a smile before closing the door behind him. "Check up on me..." She grumbled with a huff before flopping back onto the bed on her back.

Even from halfway down the hallway, Derek's keen werewolf ears had heard her words. Though, more clearly than that, the tone of her voice. 'Fuck.' He hissed mentally. 'What have I done?'


	27. Chapter 27

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Don't shoot the messenger!"

"No, dad, I'm fine, honestly." Stiles hated lying to her father, but she couldn't exactly tell him what had happened. It had already been two days since she had last seen him and while she felt incredibly guilty, she was also really relieved that the one week school break for Easter began tomorrow. "Yeah, I'm gonna be staying at Scott's tonight... Yeah, he asked Melissa and she says it's fine... It's just the usual supernatural dilemma... Yup, I promise... I know. But you can count on Scott to keep me safe. He's done a good job so far. Plus, I've also saved his ass more times than I can count." She pointed that last part, smirking to herself and chuckled at her father's response. "Okay, dad. Just make sure you don't eat too much of those stupid Twinkies you love so much." She scoffed lightly at his protest. "Yeah, well, I love Gummy-Bears, but you don't see me inhaling them like my life depends on it."

Scott chuckled to himself as he appeared in his bedroom doorway, leaning casually against the wall.

Stiles shot her best friend a playful glare, knowing very well that he was probably eavesdropping.

Scott simply grinned cheekily back at her.

"Okay, dad. I'll talk to you tomorrow. Promise... Uh-huh -- I love ya, old man." Stiles chuckled at his retort before finally hanging up.

"Trouble on the home-front?" Scott aired, arching a curious brow.

"Don't pretend you didn't hear every word." Stiles countered with a smirk. "Stupid werewolf senses." She muttered, her smirk growing slightly, knowing that he could hear her perfectly well. She then tossed his iPhone back to, mentally cursing herself when he caught it in one hand with his stupid werewolf reflexes.

Scott returned a smug smirk of his own as he shoved the iPhone into his pocket. "How're you doing, anyway?" He asked, his voice slightly softer as he slumped onto his bed beside her.

Stiles let out a tired sigh and shrugged lazily. "Good? I don't know. I mean, side still aches like a mother," She hissed, motioning to her ribcage. "But other than that, I'm okay... I'll be fine. I just need a couple more days to get rid of these stupid cuts and bruises before I even think about seeing my dad again."

Scott nodded, shooting her a look of understanding. "Well, obviously, you can stay here until then. Mom doesn't care."

Stiles smiled gratefully and nodded. "But only if we can have separate covers, 'cause, dude, you fucking hog that shit up."

Scott scoffed. "Like you even need it. You're as hot as the fricking Sun." He retorted as a matter of fact.

"What!?" Stiles scowled slightly. Clearly, she thought he was talking absolute nonsense. "No way, dude! I fucking freeze! I'm always cold at night, for some reason. Especially my feet." She added that last part with a rather thoughtful and slightly annoyed expression.

Scott snorted in amusement, but left it at that. He knew there was no use arguing with the stubborn girl. "So..." He chirped slowly, eyeing her curiously.

Stiles arched a brow at him, looking slightly confused. "Sooo...?" She chirped back.

Scott rolled his eyes, but there was a slightly smile lingering at the corners of his lips. "So -- Derek came to see you last night..." He said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "What happened?"

Stiles glared slightly. "Allison." She muttered.

Scott's smile widened slowly. "Nope -- Lydia." He chuckled at her widened eyes. "She text me this morning, but didn't say much."

"Well, what did she say!?" Stiles snipped, now glaring at him instead.

Scott arched a brow. "Whoa! Hey! Don't shoot the messenger!" He cried, holding up both his hands in defence.

Stiles' eyes narrowed even further. "Scott," She growled, her tone warning him not to mess with her right now.

Scott finally let out a breathy chuckle. "I'm just messing with you, dude. All she said was that Derek came to see you. But I already knew that." He explained with a casual shrug.

"What? How?" Stiles asked, looking slightly confused again.

"We were all over at Derek's last night..." Scott began sheepishly. "We were talking about what to do with Silver and I kinda got into a fight with Derek..."

Stiles groaned, shaking her head in dismay. "When do you guys ever not fight? Seriously, maybe you two should just fuck and get it over with."

Scott stared blankly at her for a few moments, she seemed very serious, from the tone of her voice to her expression. He finally glared at her, letting out a huff. "You are vile." He grumbled.

Stiles couldn't help chuckling in amusement. "Pff. Like you're NOT?" She quipped, only earning another glare.

Scott rolled his eyes, but also couldn't help chuckling lightly. "Anyway, stop stalling. I know something happened, 'cause Cora said he was acting a little weird when he got back to the loft last night. Well, weird for Derek, anyway." He smirked knowingly at her, waiting patiently for her response.

Stiles let out a huff. Though, she couldn't help feeling a little curious -- Derek? Acting weird? Weirder than his usual miserable self? Maybe he was weirded out by the whole kissing thing, she thought, fighting the urge to roll her eyes. "Nothing happened. God, get a life." She snipped, mentally cursing herself immediately thereafter. 'Too slow, Stilinski. Or rather, too quick. Fuck. I need more Adderall.'

Scott's lips instantly spread into a wide grin. "Oh, my God! Something did happen! I knew it! Spill! Now!"

Stiles arched a brow at him, looking less than impressed. "Dude, are you on your man-period or something? Do you need me to bust out a tampon for you?" She asked sarcastically, though, her expression was deadly serious.

Scott laughed, shoving her gently. "Oh, come on, dude! Tell me! Please?" He asked, pouting hopefully.

Stiles groaned. "Ugh. Stop with the stupid werepuppy eyes. It's not cute." Lie. Complete lie. Scott was probably the most adorable person she had ever met. She just wanted to hug him until he suffocated sometimes. But in a loving way, of course. Not in a murderous way. Well, not most of the time, anyway. "Alright, fine, God! He kissed me, okay! Are you happy now? Or do you wanna gush now?" She asked, wrinkling her nose slightly.

Scott's eyes widened in excitement for all of a couple of seconds. "What!?" He snapped, now glaring angrily. 'He was supposed to talk to her, not fricking try it on with her! What the fuck!? Is he trying to fricking tear her apart completely!? Ugh! It's bad enough that he's her mate! Why!? Why him!? Why not Isaac? God, even Aiden! Derek Hale's fricking trouble! She's gonna end up dead and I'll have lost her forever...' He nearly shuddered at the mere thought. He couldn't lose Stiles. Not after all they had been through. He loved Allison more than anything, but Stiles had always been there for him, right from the very start. And he couldn't ever imagine his life without her.

Stiles arched a brow, surprised at his reaction and also a little confused. "Okay, I kinda took that out of context on purpose there." She admitted, holding back an amused smirk. "I had a panic attack and it was real bad this time." She explained with a sheepish expression.

"So, he just thought he'd solve the issue by sticking his tongue down your throat!?" Scott asked with a slight snarl.

"Dude, there were NO tongues." Stiles scalded him as a mother would her child. "It barely last five seconds. Literally."

Scott narrowed his eyes slightly, staring suspiciously as if he didn't quit believe her. "And that's ALL he did?" He asked, his voice low and wary.

Stiles rolled her eyes, but nodded anyway. "Yes, dude. It was like a ten second thing and it actually worked. It distracted me, at least." She stated, trying her hardest not to blush and actually managing to keep her pulse steady, knowing he would hear.

"You said it was five seconds!" Scott exclaimed, his eyes widening.

"Eh, same diff'." Stiles mumbled with a lazy shrug.

Scott simply glared at her.

"Ugh. What, dude?" Stiles scowled at him. "It was a one time thing. It meant nothing. It was nothing. Please, move on and stop sulking like a little werebitch." She retorted snootily. But it wasn't nothing. Not to Stiles, anyway. Until last night, Stiles had never looked at Derek in any other way, other than him being such a sourwolf all the time. He had always just kind of been there, muddled up in all of this supernatural chaos. He had also been a slightly dysfunctional, but actually rather attentive older brother and werewolf mentor to Scott. And not to mention that he had saved her own ass many times, too, even when she knew that she really did irritate the hell out of him sometimes... Most of the time. But now Derek had to go and ruin everything by kissing her and now she was left feeling slightly confused by these odd and slightly pleasant, but most definitely unwelcome emotions. She had never felt romantically for a boy before. She had never really felt for anyone romantically before. Well, there was that one time when she and Scott were dating... When they were both 5 and 6 years old. And that one "relationship" Stiles had ever had, burned and crashed when stupid Scott killed her pet hamster by throwing it against her bedroom wall, just because he claimed that Sharky bit him. She scoffed loudly at the memory, being lost in her thoughts as she flopped back onto her bed, staring up at her ceiling.

Scott arched a curious brow upon hearing her. "I am not a little werebitch." He grumbled, shooting her a pathetic glare.

Stiles rolled her eyes, but couldn't help smirking to herself in amusement. "Then shut up and talk about something else."

"Well, which is it? Do you want me to shut up or talking about something else?" Scott asked, shooting her a humorous grin.

Stiles shot him a playful glare in return. "Shut up about Derek and talk about something else, smartass." She quipped with a smug smirk...

"...I don't wanna talk about anything else!" Silver roared, slamming open palms angrily down on the small wooden table, splintering it slightly, but not quite breaking it... Yet, anyway.

Peter simply stared calmly back at her as he sat opposite her. He gave her a few seconds, watching her heaving and huffing her angry breaths out as she glared menacingly back at him. "Feel better?" He asked, arching an expectant brow.

Silver scoffed loudly. "I'll feel better when I kill your whore sister's sprogs! And you!" She hissed, her tone incredibly low and venomous. After being humiliated by Derek and his stupid pups, she really wasn't in the mood for interrogation. And knowing that she was trapped in this disgusting motel room by mountain ash really only added to pressure of her breaking point.

Peter's jaw tightened slightly. Even if he was cruel and overbearing at times, he still cared for his family. Though, in his own twisted way, even he admitted that. And it really did strike a nerve for him whenever someone spoke ill of his late big sister. She had been his sister, his mother, his Alpha, his mentor, his everything. And he had to admit he'd always had a soft spot for Derek, because he reminded Peter of Talia the most out of all three of her beautiful children. "If you don't wanna talk, that's fine." He stated stiffly, though, still managing to keep calm. Controlling his emotions was always one thing he was good at. Although, he knew he had competition there with Derek. And Cora especially, the little she devil. He smiled to himself, his little niece really did remind him of himself sometimes. And where Derek looked more like his mother with his father's guarded personality, Laura was the exact opposite with her mother's fearlessness and her father's dark, captivating gray orbs, thin lips and rounded nose.

"Why did you bring me here? You think I'm gonna fall back into your arms and tell you how sorry I am and how I wanna change my ways?" Silver asked with a scoff.

"Of course not. Don't be absurd." Peter aired a small laugh. "Well, anymore absurd than you've already proven to be these last few weeks. I mean, really -- if you're going to commit crimes, then at least commit."

"Oh, I heard all about your antics." Silver stated, smirking wickedly. "How you tore Laura a new one when she wasn't looking, like the coward you are."

Peter's jaw tightened a little more and now he really couldn't help glaring back at her.

Silver's smirk widened slowly, she knew she was getting to him, like she knew she always could. Which she gave herself credit for as much as she gave to him, because she had to admit that rather annoyingly, Peter was always very good at hiding his true intentions and emotions.

"You don't know anything." Peter gritted out, fighting the urge to just reach across and rip her throat out. He could, if he wanted to. She was still pretty weakened and Scott's True Alpha rank had done a number on her, not to mention whatever the heck the rest of the pack had done to her. Derek in particular, which he wondered briefly over.

Silver's smirk widened even more, her dark orbs glinting sinisterly. "How you turned Scott, how he hilariously refused to join your pathetic attempt to create a pack." She continued, snorting loudly in amusement. Even when she was in pain, she could have fun. A lot of fun. If there was one thing she was a lot better at than Peter, it was mind-fucking. And God, did she really wanna mind-fuck his brains out right now. "How you tried to turn a fricking bashee," She let out a highly amused cackle, shaking her head in dismay as he continued to glare back at her in silence. And she knew that he was just itching to rip her throat out. "How you failed... I bet it hurt, just a little, when Derek looked you right in the eyes before cutting into your throat without a second thought."

"He was avenging his sister's death." Peter found himself saying and then mentally cursing himself for falling into her trap thereafter.

Silver's smirk widened even more, if that were even possible. "As noble as he is handsome." She nodded, chuckling lightly. "But you?" She grinned, her eyes narrowing in on him. "You're like, the black wolf of the family, the RUNT of the litter, the ugly little pup..." She cackled softly, shaking her head again. "Oh, Peter, you REALLY are pathetic." She said, knowing just how much her words had gotten to him already. And she had barely even started.

Peter looked slightly distraught by her words, as if he were having some sort of internal battle with himself. His expression then instantly changed, turning completely vacant for a moment. He then slowly lifted his gaze back to hers, a small, but wicked smirk of his own lingering at the corners of his lips. "Oh, Silly, is THAT all you've got?" He asked, shooting her a rather withering look as he used her old nickname.

Silver looked slightly baffled for a moment, another glare then spreading across her brow. Clearly, she had underestimated him. For the first time ever, it seemed. She frowned slightly, looking very frustrated.

Peter's smirk widened slowly as he leaned comfortably back in his seat, his relaxed blue orbs settling on her. "Let's get something straight here, shall we?" He quipped. "I'm not the mere slip of a pup you first encountered, nor am I going to let 'slip' anything back into you."

Silver's orbs darkened slightly, slowly narrowing back into a hate-filled glare.

"So," Peter let out a content sigh. "Shall we start again?"


	28. Chapter 28

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You shouldn't be alone."

"Ha-ha! You suck, Bilinski!"

Stiles growled in frustration as her thumbs moved furiously over her PS3 controller. "Oh, I suck, huh?" She quipped sarcastically, glaring to herself when she heard her so-called best friend laughing his ass off through her headset. "Then take THAT!" She yelped, throwing a hand-grenade at his player before making her own player duck for cover.

"Hey! That's cheating! You can't blow me up just 'cause you're a sore loser!" Scott cried and she was sure she could hear the pout in his voice.

Stiles smirked to herself as her player was declared the winner for the third time tonight. "How am I cheating, dude? The hand-grenades are there for a reason, dumb-ass." She stated smugly.

"Whatever. I'm not playing anymore." Scott mumbled.

Stiles chuckled. "Who's the sore loser now, punk?"

"Oh, yeah!? Well... Why don't you just go... Suck something!?" Scott snapped pathetically as he struggled to find the right words to insult her.

Stiles chuckled even louder, clearly very amused at his poor attempt. "Wow, dude... Just... Just, wow."

"Whatever. I could still kick your ass in real life, if I wanted to. You're lucky your my bestie." Scott added smugly.

Stiles was about to reply with a smart comeback when she suddenly heard a small tapping noise at her bedroom window. She glanced over, staring curiously at the curtain-covered window. "Hey, you're not outside -- are you?" She asked in a low tone of voice.

"What? No. Why?" Scott asked, sounding more confused than she looked right now.

"'Cause... Someone's tapping on my window." Stiles mumbled absentmindedly at the window as another gentle tap struck out. "And if it's not you, it's either Isaac, Allison or, uh, Derek, maybe..." Her heart raced a little as his name passed her lips, causing her to frown slightly.

"Derek? He's knocked on your window before? Why am I only just finding out about this?" Scott asked, sounding rather surprised.

"Uh, yeah. Forgot to tell ya, not that it even matters. It was only, like, one time. After that whole mind-reading thing happened." Stiles explained quickly as she then heard a third tap, this one a little louder and sharper. "I'll call you back." She muttered, ending the transmission before he could even begin to reply. Slipping her headset off and tossing it onto her desk, she quickly rose from her computer chair and crept over to her window. And when she swiped the curtains aside, her stomach automatically seemed to lurch as her eyes landed on none other than Sourwolf, himself. She frowned curiously as she unlocked the window before lifting it up. "What's up, sourwolf?" She asked as she stepped back to let him in. And she was slightly glad to see that things had somewhat returned to normal between them when he frowned at the old nickname.

Derek quickly pulled himself through the window, closing it quietly behind him. "I didn't see your dad's car in the driveway. Are you alone?" He asked, his frown deepening as he stopped to listen to the rest of the house for a moment.

Stiles arched a brow. "Um, yeah..." She mumbled, looking slightly confused. She was alone for a lot of the time after school, her dad being the Sheriff would do that to a girl.

"You shouldn't be alone." Derek said, eyeing her carefully. He seemed to be checking her over for something and Stiles realised that he was just being a good werewolf "checking up" on her, a member of his pack.

"Well, my mom's dead and my dad's the Sheriff, so I'm kinda used to it by now." Stiles said, her tone completely casual as she gave a lazy shrug. She then shuffled over to her bed, plopping down on the end and clasping her hands in her lap. "I'm fine." She told him, shooting him a reassuring look when she noticed him still frowning. God, he was always frowning. She had only ever seen him smile, like, once or twice in all the time she had known him and even then, it was only a smug smirk, not even a real smile.

"If you say so." Derek mumbled, though, he sounded genuine, so Stiles let his reply be without any smart-ass comebacks. "Are you still in any pain?" He asked, eyeing her carefully again.

"Only if I lay on my left side for too long. But other than that, I'm just peachey." Stiles replied with a small smile.

Derek simply nodded in response. And there was still that slightly troubled scowl pressed against his pretty face.

"Um, where's Silver?" Stiles asked, her tone low and slightly wary.

Derek sighed quietly before answering. "She's with Peter, at the moment. She's supposedly working with someone else, so I don't really wanna just kill her... Well, not yet, anyway." He added that last part with a quirky little grin as he sat down on the end of the bed, beside her.

Stiles stared at him for a moment before letting out a breathy chuckle. "You really do have a way with people, huh?" She quipped. It seemed like she was no longer able to hold back her silver tongue. But it was her dad's fault, really. She had been "lucky" enough to inherit her dad's dry and sometimes rather cruel humour. In fact, she had inherited most of his personality traits from his stubborness to his fierce loyalty. Stiles was always so fiercely loyal to the ones closest to her heart. She would do anything for any one of them, even die, willingly and happily.

Derek huffed out a short laugh and he leant forward to rest his elbows on his knees. "Yeah, well, the bitch deserves it." He muttered, his jaw clenching slightly as he remembered seeing her tied to the fucking chair, all bruised and broken. It was in that moment that he had realised just how fragile the human of his pack was. Sure, there was also Danny, but he wasn't in the middle like Stiles was. She was with Scott through everything and Derek knew that would never change. As much as he wanted it to.

Stiles stared curiously at him for a few moments. She didn't know whether to bring it up, but she was always just so damn curious. "She said some crazy shit that night..." She mumbled, averting her eyes to her clasped hands.

Derek glanced over at her, his own expression slightly confused now and also a little bit dreaded. "Like what?" He rasped, eyeing her carefully, listening to her heart, carefully. He knew she wouldn't lie to him, she had no reason to. But he was intrigued. And also just a little bit comforted by the sound. Well, okay, maybe a lot.

"She said that I was..." Stiles bit her lip, finding it more difficult to say than she had first thought. "She said that I was your mate, that she wanted to hurt you... By killing me." Okay, so maybe it wasn't too hard to say if she just burst out with it quickly and without even thinking. But that didn't mean she could even dare to look at him as she waited for his response.

Derek was afraid of this. And now it was actually happening, he just wanted to rip that Silver bitch's throat out even more now. This was just one more thing she had fucked up and it was simply the last fucking straw for him. And before he could even control his himself, he let rip a low growl, instantly rising from the bed and stalking back over to the window.

"Derek!" Stiles shrieked in shock as she leapt up to her feet.

Derek halted after lifting the window back up and slowly turned back to face her. He didn't want to stop, but at the sound of her rather desperate tone of voice, he really couldn't help himself. It was instinct.

"What the hell?" Stiles asked, looking completely confused and also a little hurt. Gee, was what she had said so outrageous and vile for him? She thought rather bitterly and from out of nowhere. She frowned slightly, shoving her thoughts away and she stared over at him, but stayed where she stood, at the foot of the bed. "Where are you going?" She asked then, sounded slightly concerned.

"I'm gonna go rip Silver's fucking throat out!" Derek barked. He then turned back to the window and jumped out before she could even react.

Stiles stared after him with wide eyes for a few moments as she tried to register just what the hell had happened. "Shit..." She mumbled, getting a bad feeling...

...Peter smirked smugly to himself as he leaned casually back in the crappy motel couch -- while Silver still sat over at the small kitchen table. "Time is all you've got now, sweetheart. So, whenever you're ready to start talking, I'm all ears." He told her, grinning in amusement over at her.

Silver simply continued to glare back over at him, like she had been doing for the last 13 hours.

Peter's eyes then widened in shock when the front door of the motel suddenly blew off the hinges, flying into the living room before crashing into the opposite wall. "What the hell!?" He growled, darting over to the open doorway. "Derek?" He asked, glancing at his angry-looking nephew in utter confusion. "What is it? What's happened? It is Stiles?" He asked quickly, looking rather concerned. He had to admit, he'd always had a soft spot for the little human. He found her entertaining, to say the least. And he had also admired her after she'd declined his offer to give her the bite, even when she was clearly lying, she had still said "no" to save Scott, her best friend, her brother. He admired that, he loyalty and her ability to love unconditionally.

Silver smirked over at the angry werewolf, making no move to rise from her seat. "By the way, how IS little Gamora?" She taunted, grinning wickedly.

Derek snarled loudly, his burning blue eyes glaring daggers at her. "Peter, break the fucking barrier. Now." He ordered, his gruff tone dangerously low.

"Uh, I think you already did that when you effed the front door up." Peter noted casually, his eyes falling to the floor at his nephew's feet.

Derek took a single step forward into the motel room, his burning orbs still glued to the she wolf. "Your time's up."


	29. Chapter 29

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Whatever you say, Chief."

"Hey, Scott." Stiles rasped as she rushed over to her closet and pulled on her favourite, oversized, red jumper.

"Hey. What's up? You sound weird." Scott replied quickly and he sounded concerned for his best friend. "And who was at your window?" He then asked, as if suddenly remembering.

"Derek. He came to check up on me or whatever," Stiles explained, rolling her eyes to herself as she struggled with her free hand to pull her jumper over her head quickly. "But listen, I, uh, I think I did a bad thing. A really bad thing..." She trailed off warily.

"Like what?" Scott asked, sounding slightly dreaded.

"To be honest, I don't even know what the fuck just happened. We were just talking and I mentioned Silver and he just went fucking mental!" Stiles exclaimed as she grabbed her keys from her desk before rushing out of her bedroom.

"Whoa! Stiles! Calm down. Breathe. And speak slowly." Scott told her, trying to calm his best friend as best he could over the stupid phone.

After bounding down the staircase, Stiles paused at the front door and took a deep breath to calm herself before she had another damn panic attack.

"Okay. WHO went fucking mental?" Scott asked.

"Derek! Ugh! Pay attention, McCall!" Stiles snipped before ripping the front door open and slamming it behind her.

"Okay! God! Sorry..." Scott practically squealed before taking a deep breath to calm himself down.

"Do you know what motel Peter and Silver are at?" Stiles asked hopefully. "We need to get there before Derek does. Seriously. I don't know what the fuck's going on, but I really don't have a good feeling about this."

"No, but Allison does. Derek told Chris just in case he needed a plan B." Scott explained. "Come pick me up first. I'm not letting either of you go alone."

Stiles nodded to herself as she hopped into her Jeep. "You got it. Be ready in 3 minutes." She said before hanging up and shoving the key into the ignition. She wasted not a moment more, her "baby" roared to life and she instantly stepped on the pedal, her tires screeching loudly as she sped off into the night...

"...Derek," Peter approached his nephew warily. "We can't kill her until we know everything she does." He pointed out.

Derek's burning blue glare snapped to his uncle. "I don't give a FUCK about what she may or may not know!" He roared, then placing his glare back on the smug-looking she wolf just a few meters away from him. "YOU!" He snarled, suddenly charging forward and gripping her throat to lift her out of the chair. "You've fucked everything up!" He roared, his claws digging into her flesh and drawing tiny streams of blood.

Feeling her toes barely scraping the floor, Silver simply smirked up at the angry pup, ignoring the pain just for that. "What's the matter, Derek?" She taunted with a hoarse chuckle. "Did I whisper out of turn to your little human bitch?"

Derek snarled loudly, baring his overgrown, but razor-sharp canines. "I am gonna END you!" He roared before throwing her harshly, face first to the floor at his feet. He didn't allow her any time to recover, let alone attack as he then grabbed her by the back of the neck and hauled her roughly up.

"Derek! Stop!" Peter yelled, his eyes widened slightly in shock. Although, he had to admit, he did enjoy seeing Silver getting a taste of her own medicine.

Still too weak to fight back, Silver simply let the werepup have at it, relentlessly. It didn't matter to her. She would have her revenge. And if he did kill her tonight, she would die happy, knowing that she would be avenged, greatly.

With his free hand, Derek slashed at her face, her chest, her arms and abdomen repeatedly. His other hand still gripping the back of her neck, holding her in place, he snarled loudly, angrily and continuously, his burning blue orbs still glaring death to her.

"Derek! For fuck sake, stop!" Peter exclaimed, his hands clasped together behind his head as he stared around helplessly. He nephew was going to kill Silver, actually fucking kill her. And Peter really didn't know what the fuck to do. He knew he was still no match for Derek, having still missing some of his strength from that pesky resurrection he'd gone through a couple of years ago.

Derek ignored his uncle completely as he continued his relentless attacks, his mind briefly flashing back to when Cora and Boyd had done the same to him -- slashed him up real good, to the point where he could barely fucking stand. But he wasn't done yet. He didn't want this bitch to continue breathing, let alone standing. His anger burned as brightly as his blue orbs as he threw her back to the ground with a vicious snarl. And in all of the commotion, he hadn't even noticed the arrival of the others.

"Whoa! Holy frick!" Scott exclaimed as he stood frozen in the open doorway. His eyes widened as he took in the scene before him: Derek going "mental" (as Stiles had put it) on Silver, who was all blood and cuts and barely fucking standing by now.

Stiles and Allison stood either side of the youngest werewolf, both their eyes widened, too.

And then there was Chris, who stood behind his daughter, wearing very much the same expression. Sure, he'd seen Derek get angry before, but not this angry. He felt a little intrigued as well as slightly concerned.

"Thank fuck! Do something! As much as it pains me to say this; we need her!" Peter exclaimed, shooting the True Alpha a pointed look.

Scott nodded, quickly springing into action and darting over to the older werewolf. "Derek!" He yelled, grabbing at the arm grasping at the she wolf's neck. "Dude, stop!" He growled, barging his smaller frame into the bigger werewolf's.

Allison gasped slightly and pressed a hand to her father's chest when he went to move forward. "Dad, don't." She begged through a whisper, shaking her head gently. She knew that Scott could handle himself. Even against Derek.

Chris frowned slightly, looking a little troubled, but sighed in defeat. He nodded back at her, taking a step back and staying put. For now, anyway.

When Derek didn't budge against his weight, Scott felt his anger bubbling up from out of nowhere. "DEREK!" He roared, his deep voice shaking the walls and his eyes burning red instead of their usual golden glow.

Derek's bloody hand stopped in mid-strike, his entire body suddenly tensing up. He knew what had happened. The command of a True Alpha, his Alpha, it seemed. And his every muscle then cramped up when he tried to fight stern voice. He felt slightly humiliated, but he also knew that Scott deserved his title, after all the kid had been through.

Much like everyone else, Stiles stood there, her eyes widened in complete shock. She had seen Scott use that voice on Isaac, but seeing him using it on Derek, and having it work like a fricking charm was really a fricking sight to behold.

Even Scott's eyes were widened slightly at what had just happened. He had actually, literally, for the first time ever, ordered Derek to do something, and he had done it. Scott quickly composed himself, taking a deep breath. "Okay." He said, his voice now calm. "I don't really wanna have to do that again, so, just... Put her down, yeah?" He then asked, wearing a somewhat sheepish smile.

If looks could kill, Scott would very much been six feet under right now as Derek glared daggers at him. Nonetheless, he did as he was told, though, practically dropping the battered, barely conscious she wolf to the floor, letting her neck slip from his claws. And as he stood, glaring and still frozen to his spot, he finally noticed that they were not alone. But most of all, he noticed Stiles was there and he immediately felt his heart sink. What would she think of him now? 'What she already thinks of you.' He thought with a mental, bitter scoff.

Stiles simply continued to stare, wide-eyed and still slightly confused.

"Okay," Peter piped up finally, slowly approaching his nephew. "Can I just be the first to ask; what the fuck?" He asked, arching an expectant brow at the younger wolf.

Derek simply glared back at him, refusing to say a word at this point. Right now, he just wanted to run away and hide in a cave for-fucking-ever. And he could barely even look at those pretty whiskey orbs of hers or stare at the adorable moles scattered across the left side of her jaw.

"Derek," Scott said, eyeing him both curiously and carefully. "What happened?" He asked seriously.

Silver suddenly let out a low, gurgle-filled chuckle as she rolled onto her back slowly. "Such a drama queen." She rasped, her voice barely above a whisper. Though, she was smirking widely, her dark, now bloodshot orbs lit up with amusement.

Derek's jaw tightened as he continued to fight the command, though, failing miserably, of course. He was seriously going to beat the crap out of Scott for this, as soon as he got the damn chance to.

Scott glared down at the she wolf in utter disgust. "I'd shut the hell up, if I were you." He said rather threateningly.

Silver's smirked widened slightly. "But you're NOT me."

Scott let out a low snarl before reaching down and grabbing her up by the throat. He yanked her up roughly before slamming her back down onto the hard floor. He smirked -- mentally thanking Derek for teaching him that move (well, more like using it on him the first time they had ever fought and okay, Scott had kinda stolen it, but whatever) -- when he earned a loud groan of pain from her.

Finally, Derek smirked, though, only barely.

"Just so you know," Scott said, his clawed-hand still gripping her throat, pinning her down to the floor. "I only saved your worthless wereass tonight, 'cause we need you. You WILL talk. Even if I have to make you, myself. And you WILL stay here until you DO talk." He said, his voice low and stern, but also very calm.

Silver let slip another tiny little wheeze of a laugh and forced a even tinier nod. "Whatever you say, chief." She breathed, still wearing that slightly sadistic smirk of hers.


	30. Chapter 30

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "A very long history with a very pretty lady called; 'Peggy Sue'."

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Stiles asked warily between her best friend, her best friend's girlfriend and her best friend's girlfriend's father.

Scott scoffed. "No, not really. But we don't have any other choice right now. The guy threatened to call the cops on us if we didn't get the heck out of his motel, Stiles." He noted pointedly.

Stiles simply nodded, her arms wrapped tightly around herself. "Just be careful, please." She said, glancing to the father and daughter. "I know you guys kick major ass and all, but it doesn't mean I don't worry..." She trailed off, wearing a sheepish smile.

Chris simply smirked. "Don't you worry about us, Stiles. Or about Silver. We'll take care of her." He said, his gaze briefly drifting over to his car, where the she wolf was currently passed out, while chained up in the boot.

Stiles nodded, letting out a tired, little sigh. "This is all my fault." She grumbled. "And I don't even know why."

Scott bit his lip nervously, glancing briefly at Allison, the two sharing a secret, knowing look. "We'll figure this out." He said, reaching out and giving her right arm a gentle, comforting squeeze. "We always do." He added with a little grin.

Stiles simply nodded once again, though, she still didn't look all that reassured. "I'm gonna go." She announced as she dipped a hand into her jeans pocket to pull out her keys. "Do you need a ride?" She asked her best friend.

"It's okay, we'll drop him off." Chris piped up with a smile. "Just go home and get some rest."

Allison nodded in agreement. "Yeah. It's only been three days. You still need to take it easy." She said, eyeing the older girl with a little concern.

"Yeah." Stiles mumbled, looking somewhat distracted. "I'll, uh, I'll see you guys tomorrow. Night." She said before slowly turning away and shuffling across the motel car park, over to her Jeep.

"You think she's okay?" Allison asked, still staring after her in concern.

Scott let out a loud and defeated sigh. "I have no idea..."

...Stiles killed the engine before slipping out and shuffling tiredly up her driveway. Quietly, she closed the front door and headed straight up the stairs and back into her bedroom. Knowing her room by heart (of course) she slinked through the darkness and over to her desk to switch the small lamp on. She tossed her keys onto the desk before slowly turning back around and that's when she finally noticed she wasn't alone. Before she could really help herself, she let rip a small squeal of fright, her eyes widened fully as her hand flew over to her racing heart.

Derek stood by her bedroom window, simply staring at her and still splattered with Silver's blood.

Stiles quickly managed to calm herself down. "Are you actually trying to give me a fucking heart attack?" She chided, glaring slightly at him.

Derek's orbs slowly lowered to the floor. "Sorry." He mumbled, gulping silently.

Stiles arched a brow, looking slightly surprised. 'Did Derek Hale just apologise to me? Seriously, are pigs flying now? Is that a thing?' She thought. She quickly composed herself once again, letting out a small, but frustrated huff. "It's fine. I'm only human, but whatever, dude." She muttered, folding her arms defensively over her chest. She wasn't really all that angry about him going nuts on Silver, hell, the bitch deserved it, like he had said. But she just knew that there was something he wasn't telling her.

Derek frowned slightly as he glanced back up at her. "No... I'm sorry... About tonight. I shouldn't have lost it like that." He mumbled, looking deeply troubled. But as always, when didn't he?

Stiles bit her bottom lip lightly. "Yeah... What, uh, what was that all about, anyway?" She asked timidly. "I mean, don't get me wrong, it was actually kinda nice to see the bitch get a taste of her own medicine," She stammered on, just wishing she could shut the hell up for once in her entire life. "But you took off like a fricking bat out of Hell... Was it because of what I said?" She asked both curiously and warily.

Again, Derek's gaze averted to the floor, his jaw tightening slightly.

Stiles sighed softly. "I'll take that as a 'yes.'" She muttered, causing his frown to deepen slightly. "Is it true?" She asked, just wondering where the hell her boldness has suddenly appeared from. But she wanted, no, she needed to know. She was a very nosy person, but if this was something that concerned her, she needed to know. "Derek!" She barked, glaring at him when he only continued to stay silent.

Derek flinched slightly, his eyes closing briefly before he finally lifted his sad gaze back to her angry one. "Yes." He mumbled, his voice just barely there.

Stiles stared blankly back at him for a few moments before forcing her mouth to open. "And what does that mean, exactly?" She asked, her voice shaking slightly.

"It doesn't have to mean anything." Derek croaked, tearing his gaze from hers again. He couldn't bare to see that look in her eyes, the one where she thought he was a freak that she didn't even recognise. "I should go." He mumbled, slowly turning back to lift her window up.

Stiles stared at him, suddenly feeling her throat aching unbearable and her orbs welling up with tears. "Yeah." She mumbled before turning away from him and slipping onto her bed. She didn't know why, but she felt shitty right now. And it couldn't be because of Derek, it just couldn't... But it was. He didn't seem all that bothered and that just made her feel a little worthless. But why should she care? She thought with a mentally bitter scoff.

Derek could smell the salt from her unshed tears and found himself slowly turning back around. "Stiles," He croaked, taking a tentative step forward.

Stiles let out a loud and tired sigh, keeping her back facing towards him and she laid on her side on her bed. "Why didn't you tell me?" She asked, glaring at her alarm clock on her night-stand.

Derek halted his steps, standing in the middle of her room. "I just wanted to keep you safe..." He admitted, his voice barely above a whisper. "That's all I've ever wanted to do."

"Why? Because your instincts tell you to?" Stiles asked with a light scoff, still not bothering to face him. She didn't mean to sound so harsh or bratty, and on top of that, she really didn't know why she was being so in the first place.

Derek sighed quietly, lowering his head and glancing sadly at his bloody shoes. "Yeah, but... That's not the only reason." He gulped silently. He hadn't realised just how fricking hard it was to talk to her, really talk to her, as if she were a grown-up. And she was really, soon she would be 18, graduating from high school and leaving this stupid town behind, leaving him behind. He couldn't get attached, he just couldn't. Only, he already kind of had.

Finally, Stiles slowly sat up and turned on her bed to face him, staring curiously at him.

Derek spoke up again, explaining himself now, while he still could. "You're still young, you're smart and you're beautiful and you could do anything you want after high school... And I'm... I'm not good enough for you." He frowned, feeling the words escape his mouth like a bad taste he was trying to get rid of. He could barely say such things, but he knew he was right. "I'm just a trouble magnet,"

Stiles scoffed lightly, rolling her eyes. "Like I'm not." She muttered, mostly to herself.

Derek smiled slightly to himself in amusement. "And let's face it -- my history with women is just... Well, awful."

Stiles stifled a laugh. "Yeah, no, I, I got that." She said, unable to help teasing. She always teased Scott and Isaac and pretty much every single one of her friends and teasing Derek and making him shot her his usual glare was just a little bonus for her.

However, this time, Derek didn't glare at her. This time, Derek rolled his eyes at her, the corners of his mouth even quirking up a little. "Yeah, well, at least I have a history." He taunted back, wearing a slightly smug smirk.

Stiles felt herself blush lightly and mentally cursed herself as she somehow managed to play it cool. "Hey! I have a history. A very long history with a very pretty lady called; 'Peggy Sue'. She's a big girl, I'll admit. But she's real shiny, too. Well, sorta, anyway. And she can go all night long, if I ask her to." She stated in a snooty tone.

Derek arched a brow. "Are you seriously talking about your rusty, old Jeep?" He asked, shooting her a rather unimpressed look.

Stiles gasped lightly, then shot him a glare, looking genuinely offended. "Oh, what? You think your stupid Camera is better?" She asked, arching a brow.

"No, of course not." Derek said, staring seriously at her.

Stiles looked slightly surprised, but then smiled a little.

"I know it's better." Derek then stated, finally allowing himself to smirk.

Stiles' smile dropped instantly, her eyes narrowing quickly back into a glare. "I think this is the first time ever that you've annoyed me more than I've annoyed you." She grumbled, folding her legs Indian style and crossing her arms over her chest.

Derek let out a breathy chuckle. "Guess I can add that achievement to my list." He countered under his breath, his orbs glinting in amusement.

Stiles rolled her eyes, having heard clearly enough. Her stomach suddenly fluttered as she realised just how very normal he was acting around her. It must have been a night for record breaking, she thought. "I get it, y'know..." She went on when he shot her a slightly confused look. "What you did tonight... I'm actually kinda glad that it was me that Silver took, 'cause I don't think I'd be able to handle her hurting my friends... My family. And if I could, I would have ripped her throat out... With my teeth." She added that last part with a fond smile.

Derek felt himself automatically smile slightly at that as he let out another, though, quieter, breathy laugh. "I'm still gonna beat the crap outta Scott." He muttered, earning a chuckle from her.


	31. Chapter 31

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Part of the pack."

The first day back at school after the Easter term break was actually a rather normal day for Stiles and her friends. And Stiles wasn't the only one who seemed to be happy about that.

"My parents are away for most of the weekend, so I'm having a little party at my place tonight." Lydia piped up casually. "Who's in?" She chimed, glancing expectantly around the group.

"A little short notice -- don't you think?" Stiles arched a brow at the redhead.

Lydia scoffed lightly. "Please. Don't pretend that you have better things to do. Ever. You don't." She stated snootily, but also wearing a playful, teasing look.

Stiles shot her a glare, only causing the redhead to smirk smugly. "Rude... True. But still rude." She muttered.

"So, who's going, exactly?" Scott asked, looking slightly intrigued by the whole idea. He had to admit, it had been a while since he'd really just relaxed with his friends. Of course, there were those nights every other week where they would meet up at the Jungle club (courtesy of Danny getting them in without a problem). However, it had been a while since he'd been to a party. Probably almost a year, since the entire Deucalion ordeal.

"No one." Aiden stated. He then chuckled in amusement when his red-headed girlfriend elbowed him in the ribs and shot him a "shut the fuck up" look.

"No one?" Stiles arched her brow again. "You do know the meaning of the word 'party' -- right?" This time, it was her turn to smirk smugly when she earned a glare in response.

"Okay, look," Lydia let out a frustrated huff. "If you haven't noticed by now, my social life here in this stupid high school isn't exactly up to the high status it used to be." She said, not looking all that happy about. "So, here I am, stuck with you guys -- who I might as well make the most of."

Allison smirked in utter amusement, biting back a little laugh, whereas her boyfriend and his best friend stared somewhat incredulously at the bluntly opinionated redhead. And of course, Aiden was the only one to express himself immediately by bursting out laughing -- at both his girlfriend's bluntness and the looks on the others faces (Scott, in particular).

"You really have a way with words -- y'know that?" Stiles chided, shaking her head in utter dismay. Though, she really couldn't help smiling slightly in amusement. Even if she was offended. But that was just Lydia. Otherwise, there would be no way that Stiles could hold her own silver tongue and let the redhead get away with it. It probably also helped that Stiles used to have the biggest crush on Lydia.

"I know." Lydia chimed back with a sweet smile. "My house. Tonight. 8:30. Bring alcohol, if you can. And please wear something... Better." She glanced briefly at Scott and Stiles, who both glared back at her in unison. "Whatever." She muttered, letting out a defeated huff. "Just be there." She ordered sternly.

"I'll be there, Lyds." Allison said, looking slightly excited by the idea of having a nice, normal night. And with her friends. The best friends a girl could have, as far as she thought.

Lydia smiled gratefully at her best friend. After everything she had gone through, Allison had always been the one to stay by her side. And she really was grateful for that.

Scott nodded. "Well, there's my answer." He stated with a dopey grin.

Lydia rolled her eyes, though, smirking in amusement.

Whereas Stiles rolled her eyes, looking as though she was about to vomit. "Gee, what a twist of events that turned out to be." She mumbled under her breath, as always, unable to help herself. It was as if her control was just at the very tip of her tongue. Maybe she needed another dose of Adderall... Or maybe she needed to cut back...

Scott shot his best friend a playful glare in response.

"Ugh. Fine. I'll be there, too." Stiles finally agreed through a grumble, noticing that the redhead was still glancing expectantly, waiting for her to answer. "Not like I have better things to do..." She added, shooting the redhead a pointed glare.

Lydia smiled triumphantly, clearly choosing to ignore the mousy-brunette's less than pleased expression. "Good." She chirped. "I don't know about any of you, but I am in dire need of some normality. Remember; 8:30!" She stated before strutting off across the school car park.

Aiden smirked after his girlfriend, loving just how very in her own world she really was. He thought it was actually rather adorable, where others probably thought it to be extremely irritating. "Later, losers." He chirped, saluting the other three before bounding off after the redhead.

Both Stiles and Allison glared after the cocky Alpha twin as he darted across the busy car park.

"What's the matter, Stiles?" Scott asked, wearing a slightly concerned frown. "You usually love parties." He noted with a fond, little smile.

Stiles smiled slightly. "I'm just tired."

Scott eyed her carefully. Her heart was steady, but he still didn't quite believe her. She seemed slightly distracted, over the entire course of the school day, in fact. He just wanted to know what was wrong so he could help her put it right. She was his best friend, after all, his soul sister, if there were ever such a thing. "Have you been taking your meds?" He asked, looking slightly concerned.

Stiles scoffed quietly. "Yes, dad." She grumbled, slightly glaring up at him.

"Sorry. I'm just worried about you." Scott retorted, looking slightly hurt by her cold gaze.

Allison shifted rather awkwardly. "Listen, Stiles," She began, her voice soft. "If you're really wiped, you don't have to come tonight. I'll handle Lydia." She added a smile of reassurance.

Stiles let out a defeated sigh, feeling her anger quickly wash away. "No. No, it's fine." She said. "A party sounds real good, actually." She smiled slightly at the brunette before shooting her best friend an apologetic look. "Sorry, dude. I didn't mean to snap." She mumbled, looking rather guilty now.

Scott smiled brightly. "It's cool, dude."

Stiles smiled back and nodded.

"Okay, enough with the "dude" already." Allison piped up with a playful roll of her eyes. "Scott," She quickly reached up, pressing a short, but sweet kiss onto his lips. "I love you." She whispered, smiling up at him.

Scott beamed a smile back down at her, his arms slowly circling her waist.

"Now, go away." Allison said, quickly pulling away from his embrace.

Scott's expression instantly fell into a pout, causing Stiles to nearly vomit for the second time in the space of ten minutes.

Allison chuckled at his expression, lightly reaching out to flick the end of his adorable nose. "I wanna talk to Stiles alone." She explained, earning a confused look from both him and Stiles, herself. "Girl talk." She confirmed, shooting him a brief, but knowing look in return.

Scott stared blankly back at her for a few seconds before the realisation finally hit him right between the eyes. "Oh, uh, okay..." He mumbled. "Ew. But okay." He added, smirking when both his girls glared at him. "Yeah, yeah. I'm going. See ya later, ladies." He muttered, then finally making his way across the now half-empty car park, over to his motorcycle.

Allison waited until the werewolf had finally sped off out of view before turning back to the older girl. "Okay, spill, immediately." She demanded rather excitedly.

Stiles' eyes widened slightly. "What?" She asked, looking completely confused again. She really didn't like being confused. Like, more than the average person. In fact, it was one of the worst feelings in the world for her. Well, save for the feeling you got after being told your mother was never coming back to you. And okay, maybe the dreaded feeling of potentially disappointing your father, too. But after those two feelings, Stiles couldn't think of anything worse.

"Please, Stiles, I know that look." Allison said, shooting her a knowing smile.

"What look?" Stiles asked, quickly growing frustrated now.

"The same look I get whenever I'm missing Scott." Allison said, her voice as soft as her expression.

Stiles tensed up slightly, her eyes narrowing slightly, too. "I don't know what you're talking about." She grumbled, even if she knew there was no point in lying. Allison was as smart in reading people as Stiles and Lydia were both intellectually.

Allison rolled her eyes, her smile widening slightly. "Please." She scoffed before throwing an arm around the back of the older girl's shoulders. "You like him -- don't you?"

"Who? Scott?" Stiles asked, looking slightly confused again. "Sure, I like Scott. He's my fricking brother from another awesome mother." She stated with a proud grin.

Allison rolled her eyes again, this time, looking a little more frustrated with the older girl. "Not Scott! Derek!" She snapped, unable to contain her utter girlish excitement. 'Seriously! Stiles is a smart girl. Like, almost as smart as Lydia, the fricking potential rocket scientist! How the heck is she so dense about this!? Ugh!'

"Derek?" Stiles' eyes widened slightly, looking somewhere between confused again and a little bewildered. "Well, I mean, sure. He's okay, I guess." She stated with a casual shrug. "A little... Moody..." She muttered, struggling to find the right word. 'Heh, 'moody' is one way to label sourwolf.'

Allison stared incredulously back at the older girl for a few moments. "Seriously?" She asked, looking less than impressed. "You're seriously playing this game right now?"

Stiles arched a brow, staring blankly back at the brunette. "Are you twitching?" She asked, arching both her brows now.

"Yes!" Allison barked. "God! Are you really being genuinely stupid right now or are you seriously trying to make me explode!?" She squealed, earning a few odd looks from the trickles of students left hanging around the school car park.

"Okay..." Stiles still looked slightly lost, and a little worried now. "Do you need some Adderall?" She asked seriously.

Allison merely glared at her in response. "Oh, my gosh, Stiles! Derek! Derek Hale!" She hissed, lowering her voice a little for their own sakes. "He came to your room and I wanna know everything!"

Stiles' eyes widened. "What --" She paused, her eyes quickly narrowing into a glare after going through a look of realisation. "Scott." She hissed to herself.

"Don't blame Scott. I kinda forced it outta him." Allison stated with an all too innocent smile.

Stiles wrinkled her nose in disgust. "Okay. Ew. I don't wanna know. Ever."

Allison laughed. "And you won't... As long as you spill about what happened." She added that last part in a casual tone, though, smirking slyly now.

This time, Stiles rolled her eyes. "For crying out loud." She let out a huff. "Nothing happened. We talked, briefly. He bad-mouthed my precious Jeep," She added with a slight glare, though, the huntress could see the twinkle of amusement in her amber orbs. "We talked a little more and then he left. End of story."

Allison grinned widely, the excitement returning to her all too innocent, though, always stunning features. "What'd you talk about?" She asked sweetly and with an all too hopeful look. "C'mon, I won't tell Lydia. I promise. I mean, I know she means well, but she really can't keep a secret..."

"Accept the one where she's a freak, like the rest of us." Stiles piped up with a smirk.

Allison chuckled and nodded. "Hey. We're still human." She stated, motioning to the both of them.

"True." Stiles nodded. "But we're freaks by association."

Allison chuckled again, clearly amused. "True." She nodded. "But quite stalling." She added with a wicked smirk.

Stiles scoffed. "I think you'll find that you were the one who was stalling." She quipped with a smug smirk back.

Allison rolled her eyes once again. "Whatever." She mumbled. "Just tell me! Please!" She practically squealed.

"Ugh. Stop. You sound like a little piggy-wig." Stiles mumbled with a scowl.

Allison arched a brow. "'Piggy-wig'?"

"Yeah." Stiles shrugged. "It's what my mom used to call them... It's one of the clearest memories I have of her, for some reason." She explained with a small, but fond smile.

Allison smiled softly. "Bet she's really proud of how easily her daughter can wrap her father around her little finger." She quipped, grinning.

Stiles let out a breathy chuckle. "I got skills." She stated with a modest shrug.

Allison smirked. "Sooo... Derek?"

Stiles rolled her eyes again, but this time, she really couldn't help smirking in amusement. "It wasn't like some romantic night, where we talked about anything and everything until the Sun came up." She gave a little, amused laugh when the huntress pouted lightly. "He was barely there an hour, really. He apologised for losing control with Silver -- not that I was all that sad about it in the first place."

Allison chuckled at that. "The bitch deserved it."

Stiles chuckled. "Heh. That's what Derek said."

Allison smiled. "Awh, come on, Stiles -- just admit it; you like him. You know you do."

Stiles frowned, looking slightly confused. "Ugh! I don't even know!" She huffed. "Silver said some shit and I asked him about it, that's why he went all nuts on her in the first place."

"What did she say?" Allison asked, frowning slightly in concern now.

"She said that..." Stiles stopped herself before blurting it out for the entire world to hear. God, Derek, himself could probably fricking hear her from his stupid loft right now. She noticed the huntress looking increasingly worried and then let out a defeated sigh. "She said that she wanted to hurt Derek by killing me... Because apparently, I'm his mate..." She explained slowly, carefully eyeing the younger girl's reaction.

Much to Stiles surprise, Allison beamed a huge-ass smile back at her. "Oh. Oh, my God." She said, letting out a sigh of relief. "You had me worried there for a second."

Stiles glared at her. "You knew." She stated rather than asked.

Allison's smile faltered slightly, only proving the point.

"Who else knows about this?" Stiles asked, her tone now dangerously low.

"Uh," Allison panicked slightly, her eyes widened like a deer caught in the headlights. "Every... One..." She mumbled slowly and timidly.

"Everyone!?" Stiles roared, her eyes widened in fury and her cheeks flushed with equal rage. "What the fuck -- how the fuck -- why am I the last one know!? Why didn't anyone tell me!? Why didn't Derek tell me!? Why the fuck does every other asshole know!?" She ranted and raved, her voice growing louder and louder with each question spewing hastily passed her lips.

"Stiles, calm down. I'm sorry." Allison stammered slightly, reaching out to the older girl.

Stiles snapped a glare back onto the huntress, immediately shying away from her. "I can't believe this... You lied to me. All of you. And what for?" She uttered, her expression dimming slightly. "Derek said I was a part of the pack. You all said I was a part of the pack."

"God, Stiles," Allison whispered, looking on the verge of tears. "You are."

Stiles glared at her again. "No, I'm not. I'm not anything. I'm just the human... I mean, you're human, too, but you've got the whole hunter thing going on with your dad. Derek, Cora, Aiden, Ethan; they've been werewolves their entire lives. And then Scott and Isaac joined the furry, little club. Hell, even little Red's got the whole banshee thing going for her... But me -- the human -- the one who saved your stupid asses continuously?" She scoffed before turning around. "Well, what do I know, huh?" She muttered bitterly before stalking away.


	32. Chapter 32

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Never turn your back on a werewolf."

Stiles slammed her front door with a irritated huff and she was grateful her father was out working, because she really couldn't deal with him questioning her, like he usually did, about everything. But she had to admit, she always gave him the reason to. And he was her father, after all. So he had the right to. She understood that and even though it was a little annoying at times, she was still grateful that he cared enough to stick around. Unlike Scott's father (who Scott, himself despised).

As Stiles then made her way to the staircase, there was a knock loud couple of knocks at her front door. Letting out another huff, she turned back to the door before opening. "Derek?" She tried not to sound so pleasantly surprised and she did well, she thought. "Is everything okay?" She asked, then noticing his slightly concerned look.

"I, uh, I was gonna ask you the same thing." Derek stated, eyeing her carefully. He noticed her flushed cheeks and slightly dilated pupils. He could practically smell the fury radiating from her.

Stiles rolled her eyes and instantly glared at him. "Lemme guess; you spoke to Allison. Or even better Lydia. Or even better than THAT, the entire pack." She scoffed.

Derek frowned, looking slightly confused. "Allison? No." He shook his head lightly. "I just..." He sighed loudly in defeat, tucking his hands into his jacket pockets. "I felt your anger and... I was concerned."

Stiles arched a brow. "You 'felt' my anger? What the hell does that even mean?" She asked, looking somewhere between confused and annoyed.

Derek let out another loud sigh. "The connection that runs through our pack -- it's how I know when one of you idiots are in danger." He explained with a roll of his eyes. "But I... Yours is the strongest link to me..." He added through a mumble.

Stiles scoffed again. "Oh, how comforting." She muttered, earning a troubled scowl from the werewolf. "Well, as you can see, I'm fine. So you can just relax and get back to your little werewolf business as usual. Oh, and close the door properly behind you. I don't wanna be kidnapped again." She retorted before turning towards the staircase once more.

"Stiles," Derek moved quickly and without thinking and before he had even realised he was standing in front of her, blocking her way.

"What?" Stiles huffed, glaring up at him.

"What's wrong?" Derek asked, eyeing her intensely.

Stiles quickly averted her gaze, for more than just one reason. "It's nothing." She muttered, trying to walk around him instead.

Derek mirrored her movements, blocking her way once again and then earning another glare from her. "It's something." He stated with another stupid frown. "Tell me." He said, his voice soft and very un-Derek-like.

Stiles felt her chest clench slightly at his tone, but she didn't give in so easily. Ever. Even to Scott. So there was no way in Hell she would let Derek in so easily.

"Stiles, I don't need to listen to your heart to know that you're lying." Derek stated with a pointed look.

Stiles instantly snapped her glare back up at him. "Fine. You wanna know what's wrong?" She snapped. "I'm out. Done. Finished. Kaput. With all of you. Even Scott. Especially Scott!"

Derek's frown deepened increasingly. "What're you talking about?" He asked, looking completely confused. "What the hell did he do to you?" He then asked, glaring slightly.

"It's not just him! It's all of you! YOU, too!" Stiles barked, poking him hard in the chest.

Derek took a single step back, his eyes widening slightly.

"I don't really give a crap about the others, 'cause it's none of their God damn business! But SCOTT! Scott was supposed to be my friend; my fricking brother -- never keeping secrets from me. And YOU!" She roared, poking him again in the exact same spot.

Derek took another step back, his heart racing slightly as he panicked. He knew exactly what she was talking about.

"I bet you told them all to keep quiet so that I wouldn't find out!" Stiles barked, still glaring daggers at him. She scoffed, shooting him a knowing and rather snooty expression when he lowered his gaze at that part. "Yeah, I thought so." She muttered.

"Stiles," Derek croaked.

"The entire pack. The pack that YOU said I was a part of. You lied to me. So, the next question is; what else haven't you told me?" Stiles croaked back, her glare slightly faltering into a weary and rather dreaded look.

Derek stared back at her for a few moments, wearing that same troubled look he always wore. "I knew your mother."

"What!?" Stiles snapped, her eyes wide.

"Well, kind of." Derek said. "She was good friends with my mother. I met her a few times over the few years. She was nice... You have her eyes." He added that last part with a small, but fond smile.

"What..." Stiles gulped back the aching lump forming in her throat. She felt her anger dissipating and couldn't help it. "Do you remember anything else about her?" She asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Well, I was only a little kid, maybe 7 years old. And they were only friends for a short time before..." Derek trailed off, frowning slightly, again and gulping back the aching lump forming in his own throat when he saw the utterly heartbreaking look of disappointment flash through her almond-shaped and bright, whiskey-coloured orbs. "But you're lucky werewolves have pretty good photographic memory." He added, smiling slightly when the look of hope returned to her flawless features. "Y'know, she died on my thirteenth birthday."

Stiles arched a brow. "Did she... Know about you and your family?" She asked curiously.

Derek seemed to hesitate slightly. "Kind of..." He mumbled.

"Kind of?" Stiles shot him a "what the fuck does THAT mean?" look.

Derek sighed quietly in defeat. "Okay. Yes. But please don't freak out."

Stiles eyes widened as the words passed his lips, but somehow she managed to keep her mouth shut to let him explain.

"She was an emissary to a neighbouring pack. They were good friends with my pack. And because Deaton was my mother's emissary, your mother was pretty close friends with him, too." Derek explained. "Stiles, I wanted to tell you... I really did, I swear." He stated, his clear greeny-blue orbs shining with remorse. "But Sarah made us promise not to tell you unless..." He sighed, hesitating for a moment. "Unless you began to show signs of following in her footsteps... She just wanted to keep you safe... Like I do."

"Does my dad know, too?" Stiles asked. She doubted it, but by this point, she believed that any-fucking-thing was possible.

Derek shook his head. "No."

Stiles nodded in acknowledgement as she tried to process everything she was being told. "How long have you known -- about me -- about... Whatever this is between us...?" She asked slowly, eyeing him carefully.

"From the moment I first saw you." Derek admitted, his voice low and his gaze glued to the floor between his shoes. "You were only 4 at the time. I got into a real bad fight at school this one time... I kinda put the other guy in a coma and when the principle called the police, it was your father who came for me." He continued, unaware of Stiles' shocked expression. "He took me back to the station and because I was only 10, he had to call me mother. And while I was waiting for her, your mother came in to visit your father, with you glued to her waist." He smiled fondly to himself at the memory. "I knew Sarah had a kid, but I'd never seen you until that moment... You were a pretty cute kid. Cuter than Cora. And Cora was cute as she is sly." His smiled widened slightly when he noticed her whiskey orbs brighten slightly. "I remember your father telling her why I was there when she asked. She laughed. Genuinely laughed. Much to John's disapproval." He recalled with a chuckle of his own.

Stiles smiled slightly, unable to help herself. "So, you've always been a trouble magnet, huh? Kinda like me." She mumbled, blushing slightly and wondering why. "How did you know? Was it like some kinda Twilight imprinting thing?" She asked, curiosity getting the better of her, like it always managed to.

Derek simply stared back at her in utter confusion.

Stiles rolled her eyes, but couldn't help smirking. "Oh, that's right, I forgot -- you're totally uncultured." She teased.

Derek narrowed his eyes at her, but also couldn't help smirking slightly. "Hey, I read." He stated with a rather snooty tone.

Stiles let out a breathy chuckle. "Dude, you need to move with the times. No one reads books anymore. Plus, it saves the trees if you read online or watch TV." She told him with another smirk.

Derek rolled his eyes. "True. But you humans are melting the planet with the amount of energy you waste." He countered with a smug smirk of his own.

Stiles simply glared at him. "Ugh. Whatever." She muttered.

Derek's smirk merely widened into a triumphant, little grin.

"And it's not just humans. I've seen creeperwolf using his laptop." Stiles quickly added, though, she knew she had already lost the battle.

"Peter's an idiot." Derek stated simply.

Stiles arched a brow. "Yeah. No arguments there, dude."

Derek scowled slightly. "Stop calling me that."

Stiles grinned. "What should I call you, then? How 'bout Der-Bear?" She teased, eyeing him carefully as she noticed his jaw tighten slightly and his eyes narrow back at her.

"How about I throw you out of your bedroom window?" Derek challenged, smirking wickedly.

Stiles scoffed. "Whatever, Der-Bear. You wouldn't dare." She stated snootily before walking casually around him and finally shuffling up the stairs. However, she only made it to the third step before she felt large, warm arms gently grabbing her around her waist. She let out a surprised and rather loud shriek as he then lifted her over his shoulder and proceeded to carry her up the stairs in a fireman's grip. "Derek! Put me down!" She roared, though, while blurting out a loud laugh.

Derek simply smirked to himself as he made it to the top and sauntered towards her bedroom. "Never turn your back on a werewolf."

Stiles simply continued to laugh until her sides ached. "Derek, you asshole!"


	33. Chapter 33

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I hate you."

"Derek! Seriously! Put me down!" Stiles squealed with a serious huff. At first, she had thought he was joking. Even when he had lifted her over his shoulder. Even when he had carried her up the stairs. However, when he entered her room, she suddenly realised just how serious he was. "Derek, you tithead!"

Derek paused in the middle of her room, but made no move to put her back down. "Did you just call me a 'tithead'?" He asked with a hint of amusement in his tone.

"Yes!" Stiles roared back. "Put me down!"

Derek simply chuckled. "Nope." He chirped before sauntering over to her bedroom window.

"Derek!" Stiles snapped. Without even realising, she then reached down to smack his backside as hard as she possibly could. "If you throw me out of that window, I'll be calling you something a lot fricking worse than 'tithead' OR 'Der-bear'!" She threatened.

Again, Derek paused, this time standing just by her bedroom window. "Did you slap my ass?" He asked, quirking a brow over his shoulder at her and looking still looking highly amused.

"I'd slap your face right now, if I could." Stiles grumbled, feeling her cheeks flush heavily. She really was glad that he could see her entire face properly right now. Although, she was suddenly very conscious about how close her own backside was to his face. Seriously, like, the closest her ass had ever been to his face. Or Scott's, for that matter. 'Well, 'cept for those times we used to bath together... But that doesn't count.'

Derek's smirk widened. "Two can play THAT game." He mumbled under his breath, though, just loud enough for her to hear. He then lifted his free hand suddenly and slapped her backside in return, though, no where near as hard as she had done to him.

Stiles let out a loud gasp, her cheeks flooding even more. She turned her head to face him, shooting him a dark glare to cover up the thrilling jolt she felt at the sharp contact. "Did you seriously just slap my ass?" She muttered, her eyes narrowing even more. She really didn't know what the frig had gotten into the sourwolf, hell, she didn't even know the frig had gotten into herself. Though, she really didn't care right now. It felt nice, it felt... Normal. Whatever that was, she wondered sometimes.

Derek let out a breathy chuckle as he finally slipped her petite form from his shoulder and set her gently back to her feet. "YOU started it." He stated with a casual shrug.

Stiles let out a little breath of relief as she quickly straightened her clothes out. "My God, I thought you were actually gonna do it." She grumbled, shooting him another glare.

"I could easily, still." Derek pointed out, fighting the urge to smirk again.

Stiles' eyes narrowed a little further. "I'll get Scott to kick your ass." She stated in a somewhat snooty tone.

Derek arched a brow and scoffed loudly. "Please. I can take him."

Stiles arched a brow back at him, looking slightly amused now. "And how old are you again?" She teased with a small grin.

Derek merely rolled his eyes.

"Seriously, though," Stiles shot him a curious look. "How old are you? I mean, I've asked Peter and Cora how old they are and they were both annoyingly very vague."

Derek chuckled at that. "That's cause Peter's nearly 50." He stated smugly.

Stiles' eyes widened slightly at that and she really couldn't help laughing, either. "Oh my gosh. That is gold. I am SO gonna rub THAT in his creepy face. Even if he does look kinda good for his age... He's still really creepy, though."

Derek smirked. "Cora's 20 and I'm 24."

"When's your birthday?" Stiles asked, perking up slightly.

Derek frowned a little. "September 11."

"Oh. Damn." Stiles mumbled.

"Yeah." Derek nodded. "I haven't really celebrated it since Laura. And after the whole 9/11 thing, it never really felt right to be celebrating anything on that day. So I usually wait until the day after."

Stiles nodded. "What do you do?" She asked, staring curiously up at him. She hadn't realised until that moment -- this was the first time Derek actually spoke to her, properly, the first time he had ever shared anything about himself with her. And it made her feel oddly, but pleasantly warm inside.

Derek shrugged lazily as he answered. "I usually just find a bar and try to get drunk... Most times I fail. Stupid constitution of being a werewolf." He grumbled that last part out with an irritated scowl.

Stiles chuckled softly. "Have you ever been drunk?" She asked, arching a brow.

Derek chuckled lightly and nodded. "Yeah. Once. I was 17. Laura got me a fake I.D. We were out all night. It was actually one of the best nights of my life. Well, until I drank so much that I threw up over both of us in the cab on home."

Stiles grinned. "You're such a lightweight." She teased.

Derek arched a brow, looking slightly offended. "Hey, I drank like, 37 beers in under an hour. And it was the first time I'd ever had any alcohol, whatsoever."

Stiles' eyes instantly widened. "Wow. Okay. I take it back." She said, then turning her head away to mouth a "holy fuck!" to herself.

Derek noticed, chuckling lightly to himself.

Stiles glanced back at him, her expression suddenly brightening as an idea struck her. Sure, it was a pretty stupid and probably crazy idea, but it couldn't hurt to ask. Could it? "Hey, you wanna go to a party? I could try to get you drunk again." She added, her grin then instantly faltering and her eyes widening when she realised how she had just sounded. "Okay, that didn't come out..." She muttered quickly.

Derek tried to contain a chuckle, but couldn't help smirking to himself as she averted her eyes, her cheeks visibly turning a deep shade of red. It was really times like these that he was truly grateful for his keen vision, in both the daylight and the darkness.

"It's just that Lydia's parents are out of town and she's having a private house party, I guess you could say and I just thought it would be fun." Stiles ranted on, yet again, wishing she could just shut the fuck up. "And I kinda went nuts on Allison about the whole... Well, what this is..." She mumbled, motioning to the very small amount of space between them. "But now I know -- I should probably apologise."

Derek frowned, noticing the deep look of guilt spreading through her whiskey orbs. "Stiles, I'm sure she understands."

Stiles nodded. "Yeah. She's sweet like that. But I still feel bad."

Derek sighed quietly in defeat. "Okay. Come on." He said, holding a hand out to her.

Stiles arched a brow, staring curiously up at him. "What? Where are going?"

"To the party." Derek said seriously.

"Really?" Stiles eyes widened slightly in surprise.

Derek shrugged lazily. "Why not? I could do with normal night."

Stiles smiled slightly and slowly reached out, placing her hand in his considerably larger and warmer one.

Derek gripped her hand firmly as he suddenly yanked her gently forward into him. He smirked upon hearing her squeak quietly before wrapping an around her slender waist and lifting her up over his shoulder again.

"Derek!" Stiles roared. "What -- what're you doing?" She stuttered warily as she heard him unlock her bedroom window before sliding it up. "No! Are you crazy!? Derek! Stop!"

Derek simply chuckled, giving her firm, peachey, little ass another gentle spank.

Stiles then felt her stomach lurch up into her throat as he darted through her window. "Derek!"

"...You're still a tithead." Stiles grumbled as she stalked up the pathway towards the redhead's large and modern-built house.

Derek trailed slowly along after her, smirking rather proudly to himself. He really didn't know how the frig he was being so... Himself around her. And he really didn't know why the frig he didn't care that he was doing so. Well, maybe he did. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that he and the wolf inside of him hadn't felt this content and actually fucking happy in such a long time now.

Stiles hopped the stairs and rang the doorbell as Derek walked up and stood a couple of feet behind her.

After a few moments, the large, oak front door opened, revealing the redhead, herself, dressed in an actually rather modest, red cocktail dress and a cute white cardigan on top. She glanced over at the werewolf, clearly surprised, but pleasantly so. "Derek!" She chimed, grinning widely. "What a pleasant surprise." She said slyly, grinning over at Stiles. Her eyes then narrowed as she took in the older girl's appearance. "For crying out loud, Stiles, I told you to dress up a little. Even Scott managed to throw on a decent shirt for once."

Stiles instantly glared back at her.

Lydia rolled her eyes and let out a defeated sigh before simply turning around and walking back into the house, leaving the front door wide open.

Stiles glared after her before slowly shuffling to the warm house after the rude redhead. "Rude bitch. Ugh. Why am I friends with her again?" She muttered under her breath.

Derek smirked in amusement. "I have no idea." He replied, earning a glare from her. He chuckled lightly. "Come on. You look good just the way you are. You always do." He stated casually, as if it were the simplest thing in the world.

Stiles eyed him curiously, feeling her cheeks flush as he sauntered off down the hallway in front of her. She then quickly snapped herself out of her little stupor before quickly following after him. She reached the living room, spotting the rest of the group, literally everyone. Danny and Ethan were sickeningly adorable as they cuddled up together on the loveseat in the corner by the large bookshelf. Aiden was stationed by the small docking-station, controlling the music, which played just low enough so that everyone could talk. And there was Scott, who was over at the food-riddled coffee table, stuffing his adorable little face alongside Isaac.

Lydia quickly emerged from the kitchen with a couple of beer bottles in her hand. "Beer?" She chirped, holding it out to the oldest werewolf.

Derek gave her a curt nod, taking the bottle from her.

"Opener's on the coffee table." Lydia told him before handing the other to Stiles, who shot her a brief, but grateful look. "Derek, make yourself at home. Stiles, come with me." She ordered before walking back towards the kitchen.

"What? Why?" Stiles whined. "I just wanna chill."

Lydia rolled her eyes. "And you can chill in the kitchen with us girls." She stated with a not-so subtle hinting look towards Derek.

Stiles merely glared at her, especially when she noticed Derek smirking to himself as he passed her to make his way over to Scott and Isaac. "I hate you."


	34. Chapter 34

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "The road to redemption is a rocky path indeed."

"Lydia, isn't it a little rude to invite people round your place for a party and spend said party in your bedroom?" Stiles asked, arching an expectant brow as the redhead closed her bedroom room door behind her, locking it, too.

Lydia slowly turned to face the other two girls, wearing a rather sly grin. "Yeah." She answered simply with a nod of agreement, earning a chuckle from Allison. "But who am kidding? This isn't really a party. And besides, I don't want the boys to use their stupid werewolf ears to listen in on us." She stated as she sauntered over to her alarm clock radio, switching on some music by Florence + The Machine in the background.

"Who wants gin?" Allison piped up as she poured out her some for herself.

"I'll stick to white wine, thank you." Lydia chirped as she settled on her bed beside the huntress.

"Yeah. I'm good with beer." Stiles said, motioning to her still half full bottle.

"Alright, suit yourselves." Allison rolled her eyes at the two of them before taking a small sip of her glass and placing the bottle on the night-stand.

"Hey, uh, Allison," Stiles mumbled, sheepishly shuffling over to the bed to join the girls.

Allison grinned knowingly up at her. "Don't worry about it."

Stiles arched a brow slightly -- sometimes she forgot how smart in other ways the huntress really was. "Still... I'm sorry for going nuts on you."

Allison waved a dismissive hand. "It's forgotten. Besides, I understand." She stated with a reassuring smile.

Stiles nodded. Of course the huntress understood -- what with thinking her entire family were as normal as any other, only for them to turn out being hunters. And on top of that, her aunt being a psychotic bitch from Hell. Of course Stiles wouldn't never say such a thing out loud, even if she knew that Allison hated her aunt for all the terrible things she had done. Stiles suddenly felt her chest tighten painfully for Derek and the family he had lost in the fire because of said psychotic bitch.

"Okay, moving on now." Lydia piped up, shooting a large grin over at the short-haired girl. "I wanna know how the hell you managed to convince Derek to hang out with us. Like, actually hang out with us."

Stiles merely rolled her eyes, but couldn't help smiling slightly to herself.

Lydia gasped, her eyes widening with excitement. "I know that look! What happened?" She demanded.

Stiles arched a brow as she perched on the end of the bed, both girls watching her and waiting for her answer. "Nothing. We just talked again. He knocked on my door literally five seconds after I got home from school. Said that he could 'sense' my anger." She stated with a roll of her eyes. Though, she couldn't deny that she was oddly comforted by that.

Allison nodded. "Yeah. Scott says he can sense whenever I'm angry or upset or in danger." She noted with a fond smile.

"So, what -- he told you everything -- I'm guessing." Lydia said, eyeing Stiles expectantly.

Stiles nodded. "Yeah. And some." She stated with a slight frown.

"Well, this is good -- isn't it?" Lydia chirped, smiling excitedly again. "Now that everything's out in the open, you two can finally get it on."

Stiles eyes widened, Allison chuckling in amusement. "What? No." Stiles scowled slightly. "He just explained it to me."

"Ugh. What the hell?" Lydia scoffed, now looking slightly annoyed.

"He said that he knew my mom..." Stiles mumbled.

Both girls' eyes widened slightly at that.

"Really?" Lydia asked.

"How?" Allison piped up.

Stiles let out a tired sigh after taking a few sips from her bottle of near-empty beer. "She was friends with his mom. They met a few years before I was even born. And apparently, she was an emissary to a neighbouring pack. She told both Derek's family and Deaton to keep it all hidden from me unless I followed in her footsteps -- as Derek, himself put it." She explained, her tone rather glum as the few hazy memories she still had of her mother flashed briefly through her mind; her bright smile, her soft waves of chocolate brown locks and the sweet smell of her perfume. And lately, these flashbacks had been getting worse...

...Derek frowned lightly, his head tilted slightly to the side and his gaze fixed on the spiral staircase a few feet away. He could feel his chest tighten slightly and he knew what that meant by now; she was upset. He sat there, gripping his bottle of beer as he fought the urge to just get up from the couch and go to her.

"-- another beer?"

Derek quickly snapped out of it, finding Scott towering over him, wearing an expectant look. "What?" He asked, giving off a confused look.

Scott arched a brow, shooting the older werewolf an odd look before repeating himself. "Do you want another beer?"

Derek quickly glanced down at his bottle, finding it empty. He let out a tired sigh before nodding. "Yeah. Thanks." He muttered, reaching over to place the empty bottle on the coffee table.

Scott shot him one last odd look before nodding and sauntering off towards the kitchen.

"Derek, you okay?" Isaac asked, arching a brow as he, too, shot the oldest werewolf an odd, but curious look.

Derek simply nodded as he forced himself to lean back into the couch rather than get up and go to her, like he really wanted to. The only reason he agreed to come here was because she had asked him to. And okay, also because he wanted to be near her. She seemed a little too distant lately, from everyone, even Scott, even her father. He just knew there was something she was keeping to herself and he felt like he really needed to find out just what the hell it was.

Isaac continued to eye him curiously before a look of realisation slowly crept across his face. His gaze drifted briefly over to the spiral staircase, a small smile then tugging at the corners of his lips. "You really like her -- don't you?" He asked, though, it was obvious that he wasn't asking for confirmation.

Derek's own gaze snapped from the staircase, back over to the curly-haired werepup.

Isaac's smile instantly faltered when he spotted the glare flashing through the older werewolf's gaze, his eyes briefly flashing electric blue, as if warning the younger wolf to keep his mouth shut. "Whoa," He muttered, holding up both hands in surrender. "I only brought it up, 'cause I'm supposed to be taking her to the Homecoming dance next Friday."

Scott snorted in amusement as he plopped back down on the other end of the couch after tossing one of the fresh beer bottles at the other two.

Derek arched a brow and Isaac really didn't know if it was because he was annoyed or simply allowing him to continue.

Isaac went with the latter, though, warily so. "I dunno, I thought maybe you'd like to take her instead..." He trailed off slowly, eyeing the older wolf cautiously.

Derek's gaze suddenly faltered slightly, then lowered to the coffee table as he let out a quiet sigh. "I don't think that's a good idea."

Isaac arched a brow, looking somewhat surprised. "You're joking -- right?" He scoffed when the older wolf shot him a confused look. "Seriously, man?" He asked, his eyes widening. "You and Scott really don't know how fucking lucky you guys are -- do you?" He shook his head in dismay. "You've both got amazing girls, who would both willing put their crazy asses on the line for you constantly. I mean, I know we're all pretty close since the Alpha Pack deal, but it's not the same. Scott's got Allison. You've got Stiles. Boyd had Erica. Even Ethan's found Danny, his true mate. And Aiden? Yeah, sure, he and Lydia are good together, but we all know her heart really belongs with douchebag Jackson."

"Hey!" Aiden glared over at him.

Isaac rolled his eyes, ignoring the Alpha twin. "And Peter... Well, I don't really know what his deal is. But who cares? I don't even like him. No offence."

Derek snorted lightly at that. "I told you; no one likes him."

Isaac smirked.

"And you're an idiot." Derek stated bluntly as he opened his bottle and took a big gulp.

Isaac glared back at him as Scott chuckled in amusement. "What? Why?"

Derek let out a sigh, mentally cursing himself. "Cora will kill me for this, but whatever. She deserves it after airing my business for the entire fricking world to hear." He muttered, his voice laced with irritation.

Scott smirked. "Oh, come on, dude. Like you were ever gonna tell Stiles yourself."

Derek simply glared daggers at the young Alpha.

"What? What is it?" Isaac asked all too eagerly. "Did she say something about me?" He asked excitedly. "Is it bad?" He asked, then looking slightly worried.

Derek stared at him incredulously before letting out a breathy chuckle and shaking his head in amusement. "Seriously, you're an idiot. Cora's your mate. End of." He stated dismissively before taking a few larger gulps of his beer...

...Peter shut the door quietly behind him before sauntering over to the three chairs placed in the dimly lit basement. He sat down on the chair to the left, holding out one of the steaming mugs of coffee.

Chris reached out, taking it from him and giving him a curt nod. "Well, I never thought I'd ever have coffee with the man that slit my sister's throat." He aired rather casually before taking a tentative sip of the hot liquid.

"Well, I'm not a man." Peter stated. "But you already knew that." He added with a grin before taking a sip of his own without even flinching.

"How could I forget?" Chris drawled out, shooting the werewolf a pointed look.

"And if it made you feel any better witnessing it; the man that your sister betrayed; my nephew slit my throat right after." Peter said, his tone equally casual.

Chris nodded thoughtfully. "Yeah. Actually, it did." He stated with a small smirk of his own.

Peter chuckled quietly. "The road to redemption is a rocky path indeed."

Chris had to chuckle at the absurdity of that state from such a man -- creature. "You got that ri --"

"Oh, will you two just shut up?" Silver huffed out from the third chair through her loud pants. "And maybe loosen my wrists a little? Not like I'm going anywhere." She added with a venomous glare.

Both man and werewolf glared over at her.

"Nobody asked you to speak." Chris stated, shooting her an expectant look.

Silver simply scoffed.

"So rude." Peter tutted, shooting her a disapproving look, though, clearly mocking her. "I'm sorry, Chris," He said, his tone incredibly polite as he took a more gracious sip of his coffee. "You were saying?"

Chris simply smirked, unable to help looking slightly amused by the wolf's mere audacity. Even if he did still kind of hate the guy. But he could deal with Peter another time.


	35. Chapter 35

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "That sounds like spanking, to me."

"I'm sorry. I don't think I heard you correctly. Did you just say that Derek spanked you?" Lydia asked, her eyes slightly widened in shock as were Allison's. "Derek? Derek spanked you?"

"What!? He DIDN'T spank me!" Stiles half squealed, half hissed out. "He just kinda... Slapped my ass..." She muttered under her breath.

"Yeah... That sounds like spanking, to me." Lydia stated.

"No. He only did it once... Okay, maybe twice, but still... And I kinda started it anyway." Stiles with a light blush.

"What -- you must tell us everything! Immediately!" Allison huffed out, looking as though she may explode at any moment.

Stiles rolled her eyes, but couldn't help chuckling a little over how extremely girly both girls were being. Seriously, even for Lydia, this was truly something indeed. "Well, I was kinda teasing him over the various nicknames I'd given him over the years, but he kinda started it by telling me not to call him 'dude', so if you ask me, he led me straight into that one, so he kinda deserved it really." She stated with a slight grin. "In the end, I went with 'Der-Bear'. Kinda cute -- right?" She asked casually, though grinning slightly in amusement.

Both girls immediately broke out into utterly amused laughter.

"Oh, THAT is just awesomeness on a strawberry popsicle!" Allison chirped, giggling loudly as she knocked back another small shot of her disgusting gin -- or what Stiles had dubbed as fricking paint stripper.

"Oh, my God! I am SO calling him 'Der-Bear' from now on!" Lydia piped up, shaking her head in amusement as she lifted her fourth glass of Chardonnay to her red lips.

"No!" Stiles' eyes widened slightly in horror, though, she couldn't help let out a chuckle of her own. "Oh, my God, no, seriously. Please don't. He threatened to throw me out of my bedroom window if I ever called him that, let alone ever telling anyone about it." She hissed in a low voice, clearly paranoid that he may have been listening in.

Lydia pouted as Allison chuckled loudly. "Ugh. Fine! Whatever."

"He wouldn't dare throw you out of your bedroom window." Allison stated snootily. "Or any window, for that matter. I'd kick his ass."

Stiles scoffed loudly. "Oh, yeah? And what would you do -- put an arrow in his ass?"

"No... Not his ass. You want his ass." Allison stated, smiling smugly when Stiles glared at her.

"Anyway, he already made good on his promise. That's where the whole lifting me up over his head and spanking my ass comes in." She grumbled, though, still unable to help smiling slightly at the memory.

Lydia glanced briefly at Allison, both girls sharing a look somewhere between knowing and amused. "So then, he DID spank you?"

Stiles mentally cursed herself. "Again; I hate you." She mumbled, shooting the redhead a glare.

Lydia simply smirked in triumph, while Allison continued to giggle to herself over the entire situation...

...Scott laughed loudly at that. "I fricking knew it!" He exclaimed, smirking in amusement at the curly-haired wolf's utterly bewildered expression.

Derek wanted to glare, but instead found himself smirking slightly also.

"Are you serious?" Isaac asked in a low voice.

"As much as I wanna break your face for it -- yes, I'm serious." Derek replied simply.

"Well, what -- how -- why the hell didn't you tell me!?" Isaac barked, now glaring slightly as his ex-Alpha.

Derek rolled his eyes as he took another large gulp of his sixth beer. "Why do you think?" He asked, arching an expectant brow. "The first time you ever saw her, you were ogling her like a dirty dog." He stated with a pointed glare back.

Aiden let out a loud and amused chuckle. "He [b]is[/b] a dirty dog." He stated. "Allisooon." He sang quietly under his breath with a grin, then earning a deathly glare from Scott.

Isaac blushed slightly at that. "Yeah. But... She's hott." He muttered with a casual shrug, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Which it actually was, to him.

Derek's jaw tightened slightly, but he knew it wasn't the pup's fault. No more than it was his in his own situation.

Scott's eyes narrowed over at his so-called friend. "You had better be talking about Cora." He practically snarled, gripping his beer bottle to the point where he thought he would actually crush it. However, he managed to control himself. This time, anyway.

"Whoa! Boys!" Aiden piped up. Though, he still looked rather amused. "We're supposed to be having fun here -- remember?"

Derek simply rolled his eyes, ignoring them as he finished his in just a couple more swigs.

"Yes, I was talking about Cora." Isaac stated snootily. "Calm down." He grumbled with a small huff.

Derek arched a brow at him.

Isaac let out another frustrated huff. "Oh, YOU can calm down, too." He chided. "YOU are the one who told me in the first place." He reminded with another pointed look.

"And I am now regretting it. Deeply." Derek muttered under his breath before rising from the couch and making his way towards the kitchen.

"Hey, uh, Derek?" Isaac piped up rather warily.

"No." Derek called out before reappearing with his seventh bottle of beer.

Isaac scowled as he watched the older wolf plop lazily back down onto the couch beside Scott. "'No'?" He scoffed lightly. "You don't even know what I was gonna s --"

"Yes, I do." Derek cut in, his tone blunt and vacant, though, his lips slightly curled into an amused smile.

Isaac glared at him once again. "Why the hell did you tell me, then!?" He wailed.

"Isn't it obvious?" Aiden asked, wearing his infamous, cocky smirk. "To make you suffer."

Derek shot the Alpha twin a brief, knowing smirk.

Scott chuckled as Isaac pouted. "And just like that, Derek's my best friend."

Derek arched a brow, clearly unimpressed. "Yeah. Sorry. I don't swing that way." He muttered before taking a large gulp of his beer.

"Oh, snap!" Aiden exclaimed, quickly reaching over the coffee table to high-five the curly-haired wolf.

Isaac chuckled mechanically, shooting Scott a rather immature, smug look.

Scott shot him a brief glare before glancing back to the oldest wolf. "Wow, Derek. You're witty as well as actually present with us tonight." He aired casually, wearing a smug smirk of his own. "Care to explain why that might be?" He asked with a taunt in his tone.

Derek's eyes instantly narrowed over at the youngest Alpha. "No." He retorted simply before turning back to guzzle down his beer.

"Are you sure about that?" Scott asked with a pout in his tone now.

Derek's glare landed back on him. "I can't explain it in words. How about I show you by beating the crap outta you instead?" He asked, his tone low, but calm, almost too calm. It was clear he was being serious.

Scott scoffed loudly. "We've had this conversation before. And we've already danced the dance."

"Yeah." Derek smirked. "And I won. Outstandingly."

Scott instantly glared back. "Screw you." He huffed.

Derek's smirk only widened. "We've had this conversation before; I don't swing that way."

Scott's glare only darkened as both Isaac and Aiden burst out into a fit of sniggers. Scott then proceeded to glare at all three of his so-called pack brothers. "I hate you. All of you." He grumbled before nursing the last little bit of his fourth beer.

Derek smirked triumphantly. "And on that note; I win again..."

...Stiles took a few deep breaths and let herself zone out of the girls' conversation. She suddenly felt rather dizzy, her vision blurring, though, only for a few seconds.

"Hey, Stiles -- you okay?" Allison asked, placing a gentle hand on the older girl's shoulder.

Stiles quickly shook herself out of whatever the hell was happening to her. 'God, gimme a break. What now?' She thought bitterly as she shot the huntress a small smile of reassurance. "Yeah. Just feeling a little dizzy, but it's probably the beer."

"Hang on," Lydia shot the older girl a stern and rather motherly look. "You're not drinking while you're on your meds -- are you?"

"No. Don't worry." Stiles replied. "The last dose I took was this morning before school."

Lydia nodded, seeming pleased with that answer. "Okay. Good. And don't take any until tomorrow morning now, either. And maybe you should stop drinking now."

Stiles nodded. "Yes, mom." She mumbled, unable to help smirking slightly in amusement.

Lydia simply rolled her eyes before pouring herself her fifth glass of wine.

"You sure you're okay?" Allison asked, eyeing her with concern.

Stiles smiled and nodded. "I'm good. Lydia's right. And I don't need booze to hang out with my besties."

"Your besties?" Lydia arched a brow. "You watch The Big Bang Theory -- don't you?"

Stiles grinned proudly. "Yep. I'm team ShAmy, yo. All the way."

Lydia grinned back, seeming rather pleased. "Okay, you've officially gone up in my estimations."

Stiles scoffed loudly. "Gee, thanks, Red. That may be the nicest thing you've ever said to me."

"You're welcome, darling." Lydia chirped, putting on a heavy southern accent to emphasis the word 'darling.'

Stiles chuckled. "Darling? Seriously, you're drunk. I am cutting you aw-ooff." She teased in a sing-song voice.

"Gamora..."

Stiles' head snapped to the right of her at the sound of someone hissing her name from the corner of the bedroom. She frowned slightly, seeing no one there and quickly shook it off...

...Derek frowned slightly to himself as the others talked amongst themselves. His gaze slowly drifted back towards the spiral staircase. His entire body was slightly stiff, one hand gripping his empty beer bottle, the other gripping the armrest of the couch. He didn't feel right. He didn't know why, but he just didn't...

...Lydia giggled loudly, covering her mouth at the foul joke the huntress had just shared with the trio.

Stiles chuckled. "Oh, Allison. That is SO fucking wrong. On so many levels. Which reminds me -- some guy farted in an elevator today, which was also wrong on so many levels."

Lydia smirked in amusement at that.

Allison chuckled. "Hey, I'm as innocent as they come. And Scott's the one who told me the joke. And he said that Aiden told him." She stated, shooting the redhead a pointed look.

Lydia simply rolled her eyes, a smirk still lingering across her smudged red lips.

Stiles scoffed lightly. "Innocent. Yeah right." She muttered, smirking slightly.

"Hey!" Allison wailed. "I AM innocent! I make the Virgin Mary look like a huge hussy."

Stiles arched a brow, looking slightly amused by that analogy. "No. And, no."

Allison shot her a playful glare before pouring out yet another shot of gin for herself.

"Okay, seriously," Lydia said, turning a scowl toward the drunken huntress. "You better not throw up anywhere. Except for the toilet. You can throw up in the toilet."

Allison merely giggled. "I'm fiiine." She said, pretending to act more drunk than she really was, just to annoy the redhead.

"Gamora..."

Stiles' head snap back towards the corner. She knew she wasn't imagining it anymore. She had heard it clearly enough this time. "Hey, did you guys hear that?" She mumbled distractedly.

Both girls instantly stopped talking, staring oddly at Stiles before glancing curiously at each other.

"Hear what?" Allison asked seriously, her previously lighthearted mood instantly vanishing.

"Someone called me." Stiles mumbled, still staring at the corner with a slight frown glued to her brow.

Lydia frowned, glancing briefly at Allison once more. "I didn't hear anything." She said.

"Me, neither." Allison said. "You sure you weren't just..." She trailed off, feeling slightly awkward still. Even after a couple of years, they had never really talked properly about the entire dying, coming back to life and then going insane thing. They had dealt with it at the time, sure and they had all gotten through it. But it was still a rather tender topic of discussion.

"What? Am I sure I'm not just hearing things?" Stiles snapped with a glare. She then instantly regretted it, seeing the slightly shocked and hurt expression on the huntress' face. "Shit. Allison... I --"

"Gamora... Gamora... GAMORA!"

"SHUT UP!" Stiles screamed, her hands flying to her ears and clamping down.

"Stiles -- what the hell?" Lydia's eyes widened in shock.

Stiles felt her heart beating hard in her chest, heard her pulse ringing loudly in her ears and she was thankful that was all she could hear now. "What's happening to me?" She heard herself whisper through small, breathy pants.

Allison was about to ask what the heck was wrong when the bedroom door swung open suddenly.

"Stiles,"

Stiles' head snapped up, her orbs settling immediately on sourwolf.

Derek's gaze drifted slowly around, as if taking in the scene before it settled intently back on her. "What happened?" He asked, his voice calm, but also somehow stern.

Stiles gulped silently, willing her pulse to calm down. "I... Nothing. I think I just need sleep."

Derek frowned slightly when he noticed her gaze flicker briefly to the far left corner of the room. He glanced over, seeing nothing out of the ordinary, only causing his frown to deepen.

Silently, but with concern, both Allison and Lydia glanced between the two.

"Come on," Derek finally said. "I'll take you home." He said before turning around and walking back out of the room.

Lydia stared curiously after him. "Well, he sure is a charmer." She drawled, her tone laced with sarcasm.

Stiles smiled slightly. "He's a sour wolf..."

"...So, what's the plan with Silver?" Stiles asked as she shuffled towards her front door.

"I don't know yet." Derek answered honestly as he stood beside her when they had arrived at her front door. "Peter's tried to get into her head, maybe find out who she's working with."

"But she's not in the sharing mood, huh?" Stiles asked, though, it was clear she was really asking.

Derek sighed. "Pretty much."

"It'll be fine." Stiles stated with a confidant smile. "It always is."

Derek nodded, giving her a half smile. "What really happened back at Lydia's tonight?" He asked somewhat warily as he eyed her carefully.

"Me..."

Stiles winced at the harsh hiss of the voice and mentally cursed when the werewolf (of course) noticed.

"Gamora..."

"Stiles," Derek's frown only deepened once again when he noticed her orbs darting around, as if looking for something. Or someone. He glanced around only seeing no one. "What the hell's going on?" He asked her, his expression fierce, though, not all that angry (for once).

"I don't know..." Stiles whispered, staring up at him through slightly terrified eyes.

"Gamora!"

The voice sang her name out, as if taunting her and Stiles just snapped. "STOP!" She roared, this time feeling an unfamiliar, but powerful rage well up in the pits of her gut.

"Stiles!"

Stiles gasped, jumping slightly when she felt a large, warm hand gently wrap around her left wrist. Her eyes landed back on the werewolf's, her breathing shallow and quick. "I'm, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to shout." She breathed, her eyes then darting around her front yard.

Derek quickly glanced around, again, seeing nothing, no one. He turned back to her, wearing yet another worried frown. "Stiles," He whispered, reaching up his free hand and curling his fingers under her chin. "Look at me."

Stiles forced her paranoid gaze back up to his.

Derek felt his chest clench unbearably as he stared down in her doe eyes. "Tell me what's wrong."


	36. Chapter 36

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I like the sound of THAT."

"How long has this been going on?" Derek asked, carefully watching her every move.

Stiles sighed tiredly as she shuffled through her living room and plopped lazily down on one of the couches. "THAT'S what you're asking?" She let out a breathy chuckle. "I just told you I'm hearing voices in my head... Again." She added that last part with an irritated, but pointed look. "So, why aren't you calling up to have me sectioned yet?" She asked, though, she was only half joking.

Derek frowned. "You're not crazy, Stiles." He chuckled lightly when she only arched a brow at that statement. "Okay, maybe you are crazy. But you're Stiles crazy. Nothing more, nothing less."

Stiles shot him an odd look, but couldn't help it as she felt the corners of her mouth tug upwards into a faint smile. "You sure about that?" She chirped with a small grin.

Derek smiled slightly. "Positive." He said. "Now, tell me; how long?"

Stiles sighed again. "I don't know exactly. A few days, maybe." She explained. "At first, it was just a whisper, here and there and I was able to ignore it. And now it's almost deafening."

"Maybe I was too late to save you." Derek muttered, frowning once more.

"Are you talking about the whole mind-reading episode?" Stiles asked curiously.

Derek nodded, looking troubled, to say the very least.

"No. I don't think it has anything to do with that." Stiles said, shaking her head and wearing a small frown of her own. "With the whole telepathy thing, it was me intruding into other people"s minds. But this..." She sighed again as she leaned back in her seat. "This feels more like someone trying to barge their way into MY mind."

Derek's frown only deepened. "We should talk to Deaton."

Stiles nodded, perking up a little. "Yeah. I like that plan. He always knows what's going on..."

"...I'm sorry, I have no idea what's going on."

"What!?" Stiles barked incredulously. "Bu-but you always know what's going on!" She stated, now wearing a slightly disbelieving scowl.

Derek sighed lightly. "Could you at least help us find out?" He asked with a hint of hope in his voice.

Deaton smiled and nodded. "Of course."

Stiles let out a relieved sigh, her shoulders sagging slightly.

Deaton shot the wolf a subtle, but knowing smirk -- to which Derek simply shot him a glare in return. He then turned to face the teenage girl properly and gave her his best comforting smile. "You said you're starting to hear voices --" To which Stiles nodded in confirmation. "How many?" He asked with deep interest.

Stiles let out a breathy chuckle. "Just the one. Well, including my own... And wow, I really do sound crazy right now."

"You're not crazy." Derek cut in, wearing his usual scowl.

"Is it a voice you recognise?" Deaton asked.

Stiles shrugged lightly. "I don't know. Maybe. I mean, at first it was just an annoying whisper and now whenever I hear it, it just sounds so filled with fright and desperation." She frowned, shifting uncomfortable. "Kinda scared the shit outta me -- that's why I yelled... I kinda learnt to work myself up into fury whenever I feel scared. Probably not healthy for me, but it helps."

Deaton nodded, whereas Derek's frown only deepened at that. She should never have too feel scared, not with him around. But then again, he wasn't always around her. As much as it pained him. He should be there to protect her. And in that moment, he vowed to himself that he would be from now on. From now on, he was going to be a better mate, but more importantly; a better friend.

"What has this voice been saying to you?" Deaton asked seriously.

"Gamora..."

Stiles shifted awkwardly on her spot in the small surgery. "Stop..." She whispered through gritted teeth.

Deaton frowned. "It told you to stop? Stop what?"

"I'll never stop!" The voice hissed loudly.

Stiles jumped slightly. "Leave me the fuck alone!" She yelled as she tried to work herself up into an angry fit again. She could feel her heart racing hard, hear her pulse ringing in her ears.

"Stiles!" Derek was in front of her in a flash, his hands gently grasping her shoulders. "Hey, look at me." He muttered, shaking her gently as if trying to snap her out of it.

The moment Stiles glanced up at him, she felt and odd, but slightly overwhelming sense of comfort and reassurance. And at that, she felt her heart rate slowly begin to return to its normal pace.

Deaton watched the teenager with very concerned, dark eyes. She was terrified and paranoid, that much was clear to him. He tore his gaze from the two, glancing around the room to search for the source of her fear, but found nothing; sensed nothing, at all.

"I'm okay." Stiles breathed, taking a light gulp.

"No, you're really not." Derek mumbled, still staring down at her with that intense gaze of his.

"Stiles," Deaton glanced warily at her. "What did you hear?"

"It said that it'll never stop." Stiles whispered, her eyes widening slightly. "And it keeps saying my name, my real name... Like it's fucking taunting me with it..." She seethed slightly at that, her eyes narrowing. Even if she was utterly petrified, she was still pissed off. 'No one says my name!' Her thoughts snarled. 'Okay, accept for dad and Melissa... But not even Scott! Okay... MAYBE I would like to hear Derek... No! No, no and no! Don't go there Stilinski!' She scoffed at that thought, though, she still couldn't help feeling a little disappointed. Okay, maybe a lot, but whatever. 'Like I could even try. He even said that it didn't really mean anything.'

"Stiles," Derek eyed her with concern. "You still with me?"

'With you? Huh... He could have said; 'are you with 'us'? Ugh! Seriously, Stilinski -- you're reading waaay too much into this whole thing.' Stiles slapped on the best reassuring smile she could before nodding and turning to face Deaton.

As she moved, Derek's hands slowly slipped from her shoulders and he almost certainly did not nearly whimper at the loss of contact between them. 'God, what the fuck am I even doing? She's just a kid... Okay, MAYBE she's more than that... But still...'

"So, mystery vet guy," Stiles chirped. "You got any idea of just what the heck's going on in my crazy little loaf?"

Deaton chuckled lightly at that and even Derek couldn't help smiling a little to himself. "Well," The "mystery vet guy" began to speculate. "You're probably not going to want to hear this --"

"Well, that's a good start. Thanks for the warning." Stiles cut in with a fond grin.

Deaton rolled his eyes, but couldn't help smirking in amusement. "But," He went on, shooting her a pointed look. "What you're experiencing may stem from the night in which you as well as Scott and Allison were brought back from the dead. It's different for everyone, as I've said, but hearing voices that no one else can hear sounds a lot like claireaudience to me."

"You mean like, me overhearing dead people's conversations?" Stiles asked, arching a brow and looking slightly horrified by the prospect. "Well that sucks." She stated when Deaton nodded in response. "Why the hell do I get stuck with all the shitty superpowers!? It's not fucking fair!" She ranted, glaring angrily at no one in particular. "And what the hell is up with this asshole ghost who is trying to turn me completely insane!?" She then asked, her orbs narrowing at the no-so ordinary vet for an explanation.

"Well, Derek tells me that you finally know the truth about who your mother really was." Deaton stated, though, it was clear he wanted the teen's confirmation to go on.

Stiles glanced briefly at Derek and shot him a small smile before turning back to the vet and nodding.

Deaton nodded back in acknowledgement. "Then you understand -- her abilities may have been passed down to you." He said. "There are many humans in this world with this ability and with other various abilities. But most of the time, these abilities lay dormant, though, they are still passed down through the generations, like my father's family were and like your mother's family were. However, if the individual were to experience a traumatic or major situation, if the emotion they're feeling is strong enough, then these abilities can be unlocked."

"Well, can't I just lock them back up?" Stiles asked and she knew she both sounded and looked all too hopeful.

"I'm afraid not. But they can be controlled. Unlike the telepathy -- because it wasn't your ability to keep -- you can choose when to switch that side of your brain on, you can choose when to listen." Deaton explained.

"Well, that's something, at least." Stiles chirped, looking a little happier.

"How can she control them?" Derek piped up, looking deeply interested. He really didn't want to have to deal with his mate slowly going insane, again. The wolf inside of him whined loudly at the mere thought.

"Simply by ignoring them." Deaton smiled lightly at the teen's glare. "I know; easier said than done. But it's the only thing that will help your mind stay clear. Spirits are around for a reason; they have unfinished business, as cliché as it sounds." His smirked again when the teen scoffed. "But some of these spirits find a way to hold on to this reality by taking pleasure in haunting or in some serious cases, if they are strong enough, possessing the living to commit grave crimes. They crave attention like a rabid werewolf would crave blood. But unlike a werewolf, if you are able to shut a spirit down by refusing to acknowledge it's presence, then you take away it's power over you."

"Still... Easier said than done, dude." Stiles grumbled, causing Derek to smile lightly to himself from his post behind her.

"Yes, but you will get better at it." Deaton stated with a grin. "And when you can do that, you'll be able to blink them out of exist entirely."

Stiles' eyes widened instantly in awe. "Ooh. I like the sound of THAT." She chimed. "You hear that, dickbag!?" She called out to the stupid voice, ghost-thingy. Whatever the hell it really was.

And this time, Derek really couldn't help chuckling.


	37. Chapter 37

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I don't wanna die."

"Stiles!" Derek's eyes widened in utter terror -- one moment she was her usual bubbly self talking to his mother's ex-emissary and then the next her eyes had suddenly rolled to the back of her head and her entire body had gone completely limp. He lurched forward and caught her under the arms just as she slipped to the floor. "What the FUCK is happening to her NOW!?" He growled, glancing over at the older and wiser man for immediate answers.

"I... I don't know..." Deaton uttered, his eyes slightly widened. "Put her on the table."

From the other side of the room, Stiles stood watching as the werewolf placed her unconscious form onto the metal surgery table. "What... The... Fuck?" She uttered, her eyes widened. She didn't know whether to be amazed or really fucking scared right now. How the fuck was she even doing this!?

"Hey!" A lighthearted, but rather gruff voice suddenly piped up from beside her. "How's it going?"

Stiles jumped in shock, her eyes widening even more as she eyed the strange-looking creature standing right in front of her. She quickly glanced over to Derek and Deaton, frowning in utter confusion when they only seemed completely oblivious; to both her and this weird demony-looking guy. 'What's with the curly horns? He looks like Hellboy, seriously...' She thought. And while she was still somehow confused and terrified, she had the odd sense that this creature wasn't hear to hurt her. But it was just a feeling, not something she was willing to go by a hundred percent.

"I'm calling Scott. He might know what's going on -- he's her best friends." Derek grunted, reaching into his jacket pocket for his cellphone.

"And what about her father?" Deaton asked. He wasn't judging, he just wanted to know what the plan was so that he knew exactly how to help the poor teen.

Derek gulped lightly, looking deeply troubled again. "I'll let Scott decide. He knows them both better than I do." He grumbled out before dialling the Alpha's number.

The demon smiled knowingly as he glanced over across the room. "Oh, they can't see us... Or hear us. Or sense us at all, because technically, we're not even in the same realm of existence as them anymore."

Stiles stared at him, obviously confused and bewildered. "What'd you mean?" Her eyes then widened again. "Oh, my God... I'm not... I'm not dead... Am I?" She asked him, shooting him a rather pleading look.

The demon chuckled loudly, seeming rather amused by that. "No. No, you're not dead."

Stiles let out a breath of relief and then instantly glared up at him as she leaned over and slapped him lightly across his incredibly broad and armered chest. "Say THAT first then!" She barked.

"Ow! Hey! Okay! I'm sorry, gee whiz!" The demon seemed to pout lightly and Stiles would have laughed her ass off at a large, scary-ass demon pouting if it weren't for her current situation.

"So what the hell's going on then?" Stiles asked, glancing expectantly up at him now.

"You're Gamora Stilinski -- right?" The demon asked, though, he already knew.

"It's just 'Stiles'." She replied stiffly.

"Right, sorry. My bad." The demon held up a hand, looking genuinely apologetic, so Stiles let it go this time. "My name's Cooter."

Stiles instantly smirked in amusement. "'Cooter'? ...Seriously, though?" She asked, biting her bottom lip to keep from bursting out laughing. 'Oh, THAT is just wonderful. A demon named after pussy. Ha!'

"Yeah, yeah. I've heard it a million times already. Moving on." Cooter drawled out, obviously bored by the topic of his name by now. "Anyway, sorry it took me so long to get here in the first place. But you're kind of a tough cookie to crack. I've been trying to reach for a week now."

"Wait..." Stiles eyed him suspiciously. "The creepy voice... That was you?"

"Heh... Yeah." Cooter shot her a sheepish smile.

Stiles reached out and slapped him across the chest a little harder this time. "You big, stupid bitch! You almost scared me half to death! I thought I was going fucking crazy! Again!" She snapped hastily, now glaring daggers at him.

"Hey, I'm sorry, okay? But it's your own damn fault." Cooter retorted, his tone rather snooty.

Stiles scoffed loudly. "How is MY fault!?" She exclaimed, staring incredulously up at him.

Cooter shrugged casually. "Like I said; I've been trying to reach you for the past week, but you just wouldn't let me in. Oh, hey -- is that you?" He asked, quickly changing the subject.

Stiles watched him with a glare as he wandered over to her unconscious body laid out on the metal surgery table.

As Derek walked out of the room with his cellphone attached to his right ear, Cooter stood beside the oblivious Deaton and glanced down at the teen's face. "Huh. Y'know, most people who can astral project usually tend to make their spiritual shapes the idealised version of themselves, y'know; straighten their noses or lose the gray hair, that sort of thing. But you," He smiled brightly over at her. "You're pretty confidant in yourself, aren't you?"

"I don't really think about that kinda stuff. It's not important to me." Stiles replied simply, though, still glaring at him. "Okay, first of all -- 'astral projection'? What the hell IS this? Who the hell are YOU, really? What the HELL is happening to me!?" She ranted, throwing her arms up in the air in exasperation.

"You have questions. I understand that, I really do. But first thing's first; the reason I'm here." Cooter stated, his exterior a little more serious now.

"Why are you here?" Stiles asked, arching an expectant brow.

Cooter smiled fondly to himself as he slowly turned away from her unconscious form to look at her spiritual form instead. "Because your mother sent me here."

Stiles' eyes widened slowly. "W-what?" She asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"She sent me here to speak with you. She wanted me to explain a few things for you." Cooter explained carefully, knowing how sore the subject was for the teen.

"W-what... How... Why couldn't she come herself?" Stiles breathed, feeling an aching lump quickly forming at the back of her throat.

"Oh, believe me, she REALLY wanted to. But I'm afraid that's just not possible." Cooter stated with an apologetic look.

"Okay... I take back what I said before -- THAT is something you should say first!" Stiles barked, once again glaring over at him.

"Yeah. Probably... Again; sorry." Cooter shot her another sheepish look. "But listen, 'cause I don't have much time. Your mother wanted you to know that you don't ever have to be afraid, of anything, but most importantly, of yourself, whatever happens. Anything you might feel or think, it's completely natural." He stated with a bright smile.

Stiles was barely able to nod. So many questions were running through her mind. "Is she okay?" She asked, her voice barely above a painful croak.

"Oh, yeah." Cooter smiled brightly, seeming somewhat in awe. "She's more than THAT. She's practically one step under being a fricking goddess up there."

"'Up there'?" Stiles asked, staring curiously at him as Derek wandered back into the room to stand beside Deaton.

Cooter's smile only widened. "When Sarah died, she rose to become a higherbeing; a champion to her both species; the humans and the others ones like her, and like your friend; Deaton." He explained. "And one day, YOU will do the same."

"You mean... I'd be able to see her again?" Stiles asked, her widened eyes now brimming with heavy, but unshed tears.

Cooter nodded, grinning from horn to horn. "You would be with her, forever. And don't worry -- she's already saved a special spot for your dad, too." He added with a light chuckle.

Stiles smiled to herself, her chest clenching unbearable at the mere thought.

"But that's completely up to you, of course." Cooter continued. "She wanted to know if you would rather die now and be with her or... Or you could go back, live your life, die a champion and be with her. It's a sort of risk and reward thing." He added with a knowing grin.

Stiles would have been a pretty stupid liar to say that she didn't think about the easy option. She could just go to her mother now and be with her forever, but she would be leaving behind so much. She glanced over at her unconscious body and then to Derek before finally facing the demon. "I can't..." She whispered. "I... I don't wanna die."

Cooter smiled and nodded before slowly holding a large, clawed and tough, armered-skinned hand out to her. "So don't."

Stiles nodded, taking a deep breath. "I'll see you again one day, mom... I love you." She whispered under her breath before reaching out her hand and placing it in his. She then winced, screwing her eyes shut tight as a sudden blinding white light shone all around her.


	38. Chapter 38

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You're not really into sharing."

Scott's eyes widened as his best friend suddenly let out a loud gasp before bolting upright. "Stiles?" He then let out a huge breath of relief when she glanced at him and smiled. "Holy shit! I thought I'd fricking lost you!" He exclaimed as he reached over the table and hugged her tightly.

Stiles choked slightly. "Ugh... Ahem... Scott... Werewolf strength... Dying right now..."

Scott's eyes widened again as he quickly released her and took a small step back. "Oops. Sorry." He mumbled, shooting her a sheepish smile.

Stiles merely smiled in amusement. "Man, it feels good to be solid again." She muttered with a small smile as she hugged herself.

"Stiles," Deaton eyed her carefully. "What's the last thing you remember?"

Stiles didn't know why, but for some reason, she didn't want to tell them about Cooter or her mother. It felt a little too private for her to just share out in the open with everyone. And besides, it's not as if anyone even really needed to know. That was her business, is what she told herself, anyway. "Well, I remember talking to you." She told the vet. "I don't remember passing out... But then again, I never do." She shrugged casually.

"Well, what the hell happened?" Derek asked, his voice stern, yet his expression filled with concern.

Stiles grinned widely, unable to help herself. "I think I have a new power."

"What? 'A new power'?" Scott asked, looking completely lost now. "What other powers do you have? Am I missing something, here?" He asked, glancing between the three of them now.

"Oh, heh, yeah... I can kinda talk to dead people..." Stiles stated with a crooked grin.

Scott arched a brow, shooting her an "are you for real?" look. "When the heck did THIS happen?" He asked, looking slightly bewildered.

Stiles shrugged lazily. "Like, last week. It's still new. I thought I was just going crazy again, that's why I didn't wanna say anything." She explained, knowing how her best friend hated when she would try to hide things from him.

Scott looked slightly hurt, still. Though, he understood and gave her a nod to show that he did.

Stiles smiled in return, grateful that he wasn't hitting her with a whole bunch of questions, like he usually did. And like she knew he wanted to right now.

"Stiles," Deaton piped up, shooting her an awaiting look. "You were saying?"

Stiles nodded. "Right. New power. Astral projection."

Deaton's eyes instantly widened, an impressed look flitting across his dark, smooth features.

"Are you serious?" Derek asked, arching a brow and also looking somewhat impressed.

"You mean, like, teleporting?" Scott asked, still looking slightly lost.

Stiles scoffed out a laugh. "I wish. That'd be waaay cooler. But sadly, no." She shook her head at her adorable, yet slightly dim best friend. "Although, I guess, in a way, it kinda IS teleporting."

Deaton chuckled before explaining to the young Alpha. He really did still have a lot to learn. Even after how far he had come. "Astral projection is the separation of one's spirit and body. It's like an outer body experience. The host has the ability to leave their body, using their spirit to walk in the astral realm; the realm of afterlife."

"Yup. Slightly freaky. But still awesome." Stiles chimed. "Kinda."

Derek smiled lightly to himself.

Scott's eyes were now as wide as ever as he stared back and forth between the vet and his best friend.

Stiles chuckled at his expression. "Yeah, dude." She nodded, patting his shoulder gently. "How'd you think I feel?"

"Did you see anything? Any spirits, perhaps?" Deaton asked the teen, eyeing her curiously.

"Nope." Stiles shrugged lightly, unaware of both werewolves listening closely to her heart and both frowning to themselves. "Well, I mean, I saw you and Derek. I was standing right here all the time, you just couldn't see me."

Derek frowned curiously. "Wait..." He mumbled, causing the others to glance at him. "I felt... I felt something... I felt like we were being watched..." His frowned deepened slightly before he simply shrugged it off. "I dunno. It was weird."

Stiles stared at him for a few moments, shooting him an "are you for real?" look. "HOW are you a born and bred werewolf? How?" She asked, shaking her head in dismay.

Derek glared at her, shooting her a slightly offended look. "Hey! I was a little preoccupied -- okay? You almost cracked your head wide open when you passed out." He chided, shooting her a pointed look.

Stiles simply rolled her eyes, though, she couldn't help smiling slightly. 'He actually sounds like he cares...'

Scott rolled his eyes, smirking knowingly to himself before letting out a loud and tired huff. "Well, now that I know my best friend is still alive and kicking -- can I go?" He asked, glancing mostly between her and the vet.

"Yeah, yeah. Go back to your drunk-ass girlfriend." Stiles mumbled with an amused smirk. "The girl really can't handle her hops... Or shots, in her case."

Scott chuckled at that. "Like you're one to talk." He countered with a smug smirk.

Stiles simply shot him a playful glare...

...Derek eyed her carefully once they had stopped at her front door. "Are you sure okay?" He asked, his keen ears automatically listening to the rhythm of her heart. He knew it was wrong to invade in such a private way, but he couldn't help himself.

But Stiles wasn't stupid. "I dunno." She shrugged and laughed lightly. "YOU tell ME." She said, shooting him a knowing look.

Derek immediately pulled back, no longer able to hear her steady pulse and the wolf almost whined at the loss of comfort. "Sorry." He muttered, averting his eyes to the ground and almost looking ashamed.

Stiles let out a sigh of defeat. "I DID see something." She finally admitted. But she didn't even know why she was telling him. Maybe it had something to do with whatever the hell was supposed to be between them. But maybe not. Maybe she just felt comfortable and content around him.

Derek's gaze snapped back up to hers. "What? What'd you see?" He asked, sounding almost wary.

"I'm not sure, exactly." Stiles chuckled lightly as Cooter's cheesy grin flashed briefly in her mind. "A, uh, a demon -- I guess."

Derek's eyes widened slightly. "Did it hurt you?" He asked, his voice slightly lowered.

Stiles chuckled again, much to the wolf's utter confusion. "No." She shook her head. "He was kind of a, uh, a demon guide, I guess you could say." She chuckled lightly again. "I should really be used to all kinds of crazy supernatural by now. But even after everything I've seen, I can still be surprised."

Derek smiled slightly at that. She really had no idea. But he was willing to show her. More than willing, in fact. He could see something in her, the same thing he knew that Deaton could see in her; that he knew his mother had seen in her as a child; a spark.

"He said his name was Cooter." Stiles added with an even louder chuckle.

Derek smirked at that. "Seriously?" He asked, arching an amused brow.

Stiles chuckled and nodded. "Seriously."

Derek even managed a breathy little chuckle at that. "Nice."

Stiles grinned and nodded. "Anyway..." She went on, her smile faltering slightly. "I don't really know how the hell to explain it in words..."

Derek frowned in confusion, though, he could tell she was hinting towards something. He just didn't know what.

Stiles let out a sigh, rolling her eyes before explaining herself. "Since my best friend is a werewolf and everyone else I hang out with also happen to be werewolves, I figured I'd read up on you guys... As well as a lot of other... Creatures... Anyway, I asked Peter about a few things, seeing as he likes the sound of his own voice. And I WOULD have asked you, but you're not really into sharing information at the best of times... Sorry, but it's true." She added that last part with a sheepish smile when he glared at her.

"What the hell did he did tell you?" Derek asked, almost groaning loudly. He really wanted to punch his uncle in the face now. God knows what the fuck he told her!

"He said that werewolves can share their memories with each other --"

"No." Derek cut her off, his voice stern. "I'm not cutting into the back of your neck. You're not a werewolf, you won't heal as quickly as we do. So just forget it." He told her.

Stiles scoffed loudly. "You make it sound like you're gonna rip my throat out... With your teeth." She added that last part with a sly grin, unable to help herself.

Derek wanted to grin. He really did. And he could feel his lips tugging upwards, but he quickly composed himself at the very last moment, shooting her another stern look. "No."

Stiles arched a brow, seemingly challenging him. "Fine." She said, her expression as calm as her voice. She then slowly turned around to face her front door and reached into her pocket for her house keys. And then, at the very last moment, she quickly swung back around to face the werewolf and literally stabbed him in the arm with her key.

On instinct, Derek let out a loud snarl, but instead of attacking, he quickly drew back, trying to draw as much space between his mate and the angry wolf. Automatically, his canines appeared as did his claws, his shocked orbs burning electric blue.

Stiles didn't let herself hesitate as she quickly grabbed one of his clawed hands in her free hand before pulling it to the back of her neck.

"Stiles --" Derek snapped. He then tried to pull away, but it was already too late. He winced when she winced and gasped loudly as his claws dipped into her flesh like warm butter. He then let out a gasp of his own as her recent memories flashed passed him, some slowing down and some flashing too quickly for him to even see.

Stiles' eyes widened as a few of the werewolf's past memories flashed quickly through her own mind. And suddenly she felt guilty for intruding in his mind. That had not been her intention.


	39. Chapter 39

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "For once in your life, just shut up."

With one last effort, Derek quickly yanked his claws from the back of her neck and threw himself back with a loud snarl. "Stiles... What... The HELL!?" He breathed, panting heavily as he glared over at her.

Stiles gasped a few times, trying to catch her breath, while also trying to control the overwhelming feeling of both their thoughts. "I'm sorry..." She breathed heavily, shooting him an apologetic look. "I didn't mean to... But you I had to show you."

Derek frowned slightly as he quickly composed himself and shuffled slowly back over to her. "Your mother sent the demon to you." He noted more to himself as he tried to sort through exactly what he had seen and heard.

Stiles simply nodded in response.

"Don't you think this is something you should tell your father rather than me? Or maybe even Scott?" Derek asked, his tone gentle, careful. He wanted to know why she had told him instead. He knew that it wasn't simply because of whatever bond was between them. He knew that she was too stubborn for it to just be for that reason only.

Stiles nodded again, letting out a small, but rather sad sigh. "Yeah. But I don't wanna give my dad a heart attack. Anyway, he's got enough shit to deal with."

Derek simply nodded. Of course he understood that. He knew that the only reason the Sheriff was dealing with all this supernatural bullshit was by not asking too many questions and by simply trusting his daughter and her friends.

"And if I told Scott, he'd just do what he always does; try to over compensate by constantly being what he thinks is comforting, but is really annoying." Stiles explained. "But he means well. I know that." She added with a fond smile. "And besides, Scott may not actually have his dad around, but he's still really happy and in a good place with his mom and his girlfriend and his friends. He doesn't have a small part of him missing... Not like we do. And bless him so much for it, but no matter how hard he tries, he doesn't really understand my pain... Not like you do." Her voice was barely above a whisper now and even that pained the aching lump forming in the back of her throat.

Derek stared intently back at her for a few moments as he just let every single one of her words sink into his mind. He had never thought of that before; the common ground they had over the loss of family. HOW hadn't he thought of that before!? He mentally scalded himself for that. "Stiles," He hesitated, because, God, what the heck could he even say to that? He had always known how intelligent she was. But until these passed few months, he had never actually realised just how deep she was, how deep she could be. He quickly swallowed the aching lump lodged in the back of his throat before forcing himself to say words, any fucking words, just words.

"I'm sorry." Stiles cut him off, taking his silence as her cue. "I didn't think it would actually work on a human... I didn't mean to nose around your head." She elaborated, shooting him another look of apology.

Derek shrugged lightly. "It doesn't really matter." He sighed tiredly. "You already know plenty anyway. The fire, Kate, Paige, Jennifer, Peter, what I really am..."

"Still..." Stiles suddenly felt a little awkward as well as guilty now. 'Great. I just fuck everything up without even trying.' She mentally scalded herself, though, unaware, she was also scowling.

Derek frowned slightly, obviously noticing her discomfort. "Seriously, it doesn't matter." He muttered. "And you're right," He smiled slightly to himself when she arched a confused brow up at him. "Scott doesn't really understand... No one does."

Stiles nodded.

"But we do." Derek shot her a small, but clearly reassuring smile.

As quick as Stiles had smiled back at him, her smile had quickly vanished when she noticed the werewolf's entire body tense. She watched then as he tilted his head (not THAT) adorably to the side, his brow then forming a distinct glare. "What? What'd you hear, Fido?" She asked, grinning slightly.

Derek instantly shifted his glare down on her.

Stiles chuckled quietly. "Sorry. I couldn't help myself."

Derek fought the urge to smirk in amusement, instead rolling his eyes at her. "Someone's in your house. And it's NOT your dad."

Stiles was suddenly on full alert. "My dad's working." She told him. "Thankfully." She muttered to herself, though, knowing he could hear anyway. "Is it werewolf?" She asked, glancing warily into the living room window and only seeing complete darkness.

"Yeah." Derek gently grabbed her wrist, quickly pulling her away from the window. "Wait here." He told her before slowly shoving the front door open.

"What!? No!" Stiles hissed. She quickly raced back across the lawn and over to her Jeep.

"Stiles!" Derek hissed, glaring after her.

"Yeah, save it for someone who listens, Der-Bear," Stiles chided, grabbing her trusty baseball bat from the backseat of her precious baby. "But I know my rights. And I have the right to protect myself. And if that means beating the crap outta some werewolves, then so be it." She hissed back as she rushed back across the lawn and stood beside him with her weapon of choice in arms.

Derek wanted to grin, he really did, but he wasn't going to. Instead he scowled. "Why can't you just do as your told for once?" He asked in exasperation.

Stiles grinned. "Y'know, my dad asks me the same thing everyday."

Derek rolled his eyes, but couldn't help smirking slightly that time. "Fine." He grunted. "Just stay behind me." He ordered before slowly stepping into her house.

"Sure. Whatever." Stiles mumbled, pulling a face at that back of his head.

"Stop that."

Stiles arched a brow. She could practically hear the smirk in his voice. "I'm not doing anything." She replied a little too snootily.

Derek smirked, rolling his eyes to himself before slowly and carefully continuing up the stairs. Once they had finally reached the top, he paused, hearing the low snarls and heavy footsteps of the other werewolf. He took a moment to make out a scent and then gave a pleased smirk. "Well, at least he's only a Beta."

Stiles glared at him. "Yeah? Well, why the fuck is he in my room!?" She hissed before rushing down the hallway with her baseball bat in hand.

"Stiles!" Derek hissed, rushing after her with an angry growl.

Stiles quickly made it to her bedroom door, instantly kicking it wide open before stepping in. Her eyes instantly landed upon the frozen male standing in the middle of her completely trashed room. She glanced around, anger bubbling within her as she took in the utter mess. Her glare then landed on the young man's glowing golden orbs as he stood glaring back at her. "Motherfucker!" She snarled. "You're dead, pal!" She roared, pointing her bat at him.

"Stiles, stop." Derek growled in annoyance as he lightly shoved her behind him. He then snarled loudly over at the other werewolf, his orbs glowing electric blue as his canines and claws both appeared. "Who the FUCK are YOU?"

The werewolf glanced curiously between the other werewolf and the human. "You're Derek Hale." He huffed out a laugh, obviously amused. "This must be your human breeding bitch. Damn, I owe Silver twenty bucks."

"You know Silver?" Stiles asked. "You're her daddy?" She chuckled loudly in amusement. "Are you kidding me? This guy?" She turned to Derek, chuckling a little more.

The werewolf growled at her, clearly trying to intimidate her.

Stiles merely glared at him. "Don't YOU fucking growl at ME, okay? You have NO fucking idea of what I've been through! I will beat your furry, little werewolf ass into a bloody pile of submission!" She roared. "Now, what the fuck are you doing here?"

Derek stared at her in astonishment. And to say that he was a little turned on by the whole 'submission' thing would have been a flat out lie.

The werewolf chuckled once again and turned to Derek. "She's a definitely a pretty fire-cracker. I'll give ya THAT, little brother."

"We are NOT brothers." Derek snarled back at him. "And if you don't want me to rip your throat out, then you'll leave right now and never come back."

The werewolf smirked. "Well, I'll leave... For now, anyway. I've seen all I've needed to see... For now." He chuckled once more before slipping out of her bedroom window and disappearing quickly into the night.

"What the fuck, Derek!?" Stiles snapped, now placing her glare on him instead. "Why'd you let him go!? Why didn't you beat the crap outta him!? Or better yet -- let ME to beat the crap outta him!? Look what the little shit did to my room! Everything's fucking ruined!"

Derek simply smirked at her as his features returned to their human appearance. He really couldn't help himself, is what he told himself, anyway. But she really was adorable when she couldn't stop talking. And actually kind of sexy when she was angry. And God help him, he really did kind of get some kick out of her being angry with him.

Somewhere along the way of her ranting and raving, Stiles finally seemed to noticed the smirk on his stupidly pretty face. And this only made her all the more annoyed. "What the fuck are you smiling for!? Do you even understand me!? All of my fucking possessions are fucking fucked here!"

Derek's smirk only widened as he found himself slowly moving towards her. "Stiles," He said and he swore, he didn't fucking purr like a pussy (whipped) cat. "For once in your life, just shut up." He mumbled before gently grabbing the back of her neck.

Stiles' eyes widened as he leaned forward, placing his lips gently over her own.


	40. Chapter 40

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You talk enough for the both of us."

Stiles gasped quietly, but she was more surprised than anything else. And after those few seconds of just freezing up, the moment he moved his lips against her own, it was as though her body reacted on pure instinct. Without even realising, she lifted her arms up and placed her hands over his cheeks. She really didn't know what the hell she was doing, but it felt more than good to her; it felt right.

And Derek didn't seem to mind as she gripped his face a little tighter, pulling him closer. In fact, he let out a soft sigh before he could really help himself. He gripped the back of her neck gently, smothering his lips over hers a little harder and faster and it was clear to him that already, the wolf inside was clawing his way up, begging to come out and play with his Little Red Riding Hood. And as the images of Stiles dressed up as Little Red flashed through his sordid mind, his entire body shivered in delight. As he continued the wonderful assault on her mouth with his own, his hands slowly slipped down passed her waist and over her hips until they came to rest on her backside.

Stiles felt heart racing and her pulse ringing loudly in her ears. She gasped quietly against his lips when she felt the tip of his tongue gently prodding at her owns lips. She leaned up, standing on her tip-toes and in that moment, she was grateful that he only had a few inches on her -- her being slightly taller for an average girl her age. Her hands slipped quickly from his face to lock securely around the back of his neck. She then finally parted her lips for him an was instantly rewarded with a rather loud groan as he pulled her body as close to his as possible.

As his tongue explored her mouth, Derek almost whimpered at the sweet taste of cherry he received. Without thinking then, he gave her peachey little ass a gentle, but firm enough squeeze. And when he pulled her solidly against himself, he couldn't help smirking at the shocked gasp he then earned. He wanted her to know exactly what she did to him and now she REALLY did.

Stiles almost whined out loud when he suddenly pulled his lips from hers. However, as she was about to protest, she felt his blunt, human teeth nipping gently on her neck. Again, she let out a small gasp and then, much to her embarrassment, a quiet moan when he began to suck at the crook of her neck.

Automatically, Derek responded with a growl vibrating lowly in his chest. His hands then slipped down to her thighs, gripping softly before pulling her them up around his waist. He knew he was getting ahead of himself here, but he really couldn't help himself either.

Stiles let out another surprised gasp, her hands slipping to his shoulders and gripping them as he sucked harder on the sweet spot he seemed to have found at the crook of her neck. "Derek..." She whispered breathlessly, feeling her legs tighten around his waist.

Derek pulled away slowly, another low growl rumbling through his chest. He REALLY could get used to her saying his name like THAT. It actually made his fucking dick twitch. "Fuck, you smell SO good." He snarled playfully against her assaulted neck before inhaling deeply, his nose softly prodding the sensitive spot right under her ear.

Stiles felt her lips twitch slightly at that and before she could really stop herself -- "Good enough to eat?" She teased. And for a few seconds, she was genuinely amused with herself. That was until she crashing sound of mortification sounded in her head, her grin instantly dropping.

Derek pulled his head back to face her and really, it wasn't his fault for smirking.

"Oh, my God... I... I didn't mean it like that... I just meant that 'cause you're a wolf and that... Wolves like to eat little girls...? And, oh, my God, why can't I stop? Why can't I stop myself? Why aren't YOU stopping me?" She shot him a look of desperate plea.

"'Cause I like it when you talk." Derek replied with a small smile.

"But I..." Stiles eyed him, looking somewhat disbelieving. "I talk TOO much..." She stated with a small scowl.

Derek grinned lightly. "You talk enough for the both of us." He countered.

Stiles arched a brow, now staring suspiciously at him. "Well, you've just got an answer for everything, don't you?" She asked rather snootily.

"Yep." Derek let out a breathy chuckle before slowly leaning forward and pressing a quick, but sweet kiss to her lips. "And yeah," He murmured, his lips then trailing feather-light kisses up her neck. "Good enough to eat." He smiled proudly to himself when he heard her heart thud even louder, even faster.

Stiles didn't even realise what was happening until he had carefully placed her back down on her own two feet. And she even thought she had heard him apologise, which only made her heart sink. "What?" She mumbled back, eyeing him carefully as he let his hands slip from her.

Derek took a step back, just for some breathing room, because when the fuck did it become this fricking hot in this damn room!? "I'm sorry." He muttered, screwing his eyes shut for a moment. He could feel it, the wolf, just barely scratching at his human surface now.

Stiles felt her heart sink a little further, now practically between her fricking ass cheeks.

"I didn't mean for kissing you. 'Cause I'm not." Derek piped up softly. He could practically smell the hurt and disappointment radiating off of her. He smiled lightly when she shot him a look of confusion instead. "But I got carried away. And... I haven't loss control like that for a long time... So, uh, I'm sorry."

Stiles mentally breathed a huge sigh of relief and also managed a small smile. "I'm not complaining." She mumbled shyly. And it didn't matter, because after that intense make-out session, her cheeks were already pretty darn flushed. "I just meant... I'm not afraid... Some of my best friends are werewolves. Hell, one of them is a fricking banshee... And kind of a massive bitch... But still loveable... Kinda..."

And again, Derek really couldn't help smiling at that. And it really was nice to have someone look at him without feeling sympathy for him or despising him completely. "Stiles," He hesitated, though, only for a split second. What the hell did he even have to say 'no' to? She was fucking perfection. And now had tasted her, there really was no going back anymore. "If you want this, I wanna do it right... Maybe I could... Take you out on a date?"

Stiles was in a slight state of shock after hearing that. And what the hell was actually happening right now!? Was Derek Hale actually fucking blushing!?

Derek frowned slightly. "Or not." He mumbled quickly as he tried to ignore the tightening pain of bitter disappoint deep within his chest.

Stiles finally snapped out of her little stupor. "I'm sorry, I... I just don't think I heard you correctly." She stated with all seriousness. "Did you just ask me out on a date?" She asked, staring rather blankly up at him.

Derek's frown only deepened. "Yeah... Is that bad?" He asked, eyeing her with slight confusion now.

Stiles let out a breathy chuckle. "No. I... I'm just surprised, I guess..." She shrugged lightly.

"But... In a good way -- right?" Derek arched a brow, looking almost hopeful.

Stiles smiled and nodded. "Yeah. In a good way."

Derek couldn't help smiling lightly in return. "So..."

"...So!? Then what happened!?" Allison practically squealed, bouncing with excitement in the middle of her bed.

"I swear, Stilinski, if you turned him down, I will gut you like a fish out of water!" Lydia piped up with an intimidating glare for emphasis.

Stiles arched a brow at the angry redhead; her so-called friend right now. "Don't you think that's a LITTLE extreme?" She quipped.

"Stiiiles!" Allison whined loudly, clearly begging now.

Stiles really couldn't help laughing at her friends. And she thought SHE was fricking hyperactive. Pff! "Oh, my God, calm down." She rolled her eyes at them both. "Of course I agreed. It's Derek fricking Hale, okay!? I'm only human, after all. And I'm not a completely clueless virgin. I DO know a hott guy when I see one."

Lydia snorted at that as Allison let out another exited squeal. "Please. You ARE a completely clueless virgin."

Stiles simply glared at the blatant redhead.

Lydia only smiled reassuringly. "But don't worry, honey -- WE can fix that." She cooed.

Stiles' eyes merely narrowed a little further.


	41. Chapter 41

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I still look like a boy."

From: Queen Red --  
'What time is Derek supposed to be picking you up tonight?'

Stiles hesitated for a moment. If she did text back, the nosey redhead would probably want to come over to her house. But if she ignored the redhead, she would probably end up coming over anyway. So really, Stiles had no choice in the matter. Letting out a sigh then, she finally text back.

To: Queen Red --  
'7:30.  
...Why? [[enter suspicious face here]]'

Stiles' iPhone vibrated almost instantly after sending her darn reply.

From: Queen Red --  
'WHAT!?  
O.O'

Stiles arched a brow before typing back a reply and sending it.

To: Queen Red --  
'...What, what?'

As Stiles waited for a reply, she wandered back down the stairs and as soon as she stepped foot into her kitchen, the doorbell began to ring loudly and continuously. She grumbled to herself, glancing longingly over at the fridge before shuffling back through the house. And when she opened her front door, she was met by a rather frazzled looking redhead. "Did you like, fly here or something?" Stiles arched a brow, glancing around her yard and seeing no other vehicles apart from her precious Jeep.

Lydia rolled her eyes, but answered anyway. "No. Allison dropped me off. She and Scott are having dinner with their parents tonight."

Stiles simply nodded in acknowledgement, having been kept up practically all night by her best friend's nervous ranting over the phone. "So, what's up?" She chirped, opening the door and motioning for the redhead to enter.

"TWO hours, Stiles! You only have two fricking hours to get ready! Really!?" Lydia barked as she barged her way into the house.

Stiles shut the front door behind her and quickly followed the redhead back up the stairs and into her bedroom. "My face isn't THAT bad!" She exclaimed, now glaring slightly.

Lydia rolled her eyes as she wrenched the closet door open. "No, no. This isn't about your face. You've got such a pretty, heart-shaped face." She cooed, only making the older girl's eyes narrow a little further. "No. This is about making a good impression. I mean, he's already seen you practically in rags, so dolling you up should be easy enough. We'll have him eating outta the palm of your hand by the end of the night, like a little wolf pup." She added that last part with a smug smirk.

"Again; you REALLY have a way with words." Stiles drawled out, folding her arms over her chest and sighing.

"Yes, I know. It's a gift." Lydia chirped with a proud grin. "Now, shut up, sit down and lemme do my thing." She then swirled back around to face the closet and dived right in.

Stiles rolled her eyes, but did as she was told. She shuffled slowly over, perching on the end of her bed and watched the redhead through slightly narrowed eyes.

"Hmm." Lydia hummed without even looking up. "Don't you own anything even remotely girly? Seriously, Stilinski." She let out an irritated huff as she continued to root around fricking Narnia. "Ooh-la-laaa! What is THIS? It's fucking gorgeous!" She grinned widely as she swirled around with a silky, baby blue summer dress.

Stiles' expression faltered slightly. "Oh. Yeah... That was my mom's. My dad bought if for her on her twenty-first birthday." She mumbled passed the aching lump already forming in her throat. And although Stiles now knew that he mother was okay, it still didn't change just how fucking much she missed her.

Lydia had to admit that she felt a little guilty now, but she also just had a really good idea just then. Well, like she always seemed to. "Well, I still think you should wear it. It looks about your size. And it really is gorgeous. I'd ask to borrow it, if it weren't so sentimental."

Stiles smiled slightly at that. "You really think I should?" She then frowned. "What if I ruin it?"

Lydia rolled her eyes, her grin widening. "Well, you'll just have to tell Der-Bear that he can't rip it off of you at the end of the night."

Stiles blushed heavily. "And once again; I hate you." She mumbled.

Lydia cackled wickedly. "Ah, hate ya, too, bitch." She chirped before gently tossing the dress into the older girl's lap. "Try it on, at least, 'cause I get the feeling that you've just been keeping it hidden away all these years." She added with a knowing smile.

Stiles glanced warily down at the dress and then sighed while finally nodding. "Yeah. Why not?"

...Derek let out a tired sigh as he sorted through what little items of clothing he actually did own, clothes that he hadn't had ruined through claw marks or stained with blood. "Because it's the first date." He replied, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Right." Cora smirked. "And you don't put out on a first date."

"More like SHE doesn't." Peter interjected with his own smug smirk.

Cora had to chuckle at that.

"Why are YOU even here? Aren't you supposed to babysitting the werebitch who tore about 50 bloody holes into my mate?" Derek glared over at his so-called uncle; the guy who used to be his best friend.

Peter felt a little guilty now. Of course, he, too, really wasn't happy about what Silver had done to Stiles; to one of his own; one of his pack mates. "Silver's still pretty adamant about not sharing any information whatsoever. So I thought I'd take a break. Chris is watching her and we all know that he is more than capable of handling himself." He explained casually, as if he were merely talking about the weather. "Besides," He grinned widely over at his nephew as he perched in the open doorway of his bedroom. "There was just NO frigging way on Earth that I was going to miss... This..." His grinned widened into a teasing smirk as he glanced over to the pile of clothes tossed across the bed. "Whatever THIS is."

Derek fought the urge to walk over and just punch the older werewolf in the face. Instead, he let out an annoyed huff before turning back to his small, wooden chester-drawers.

Meanwhile, Cora fought back the urge to smirk in amusement at the two males as she shot her uncle a warning look.

Peter simply smiled innocently at her...

...Lydia waited patiently, though, bouncing lightly on the balls of her bare feet. However, when the older girl stripped down to her underwear, the redhead was less than impressed. "Girl's boxers? Are you fricking kidding me!?" She glared at the short-haired brunette.

"What?" Stiles asked, pouting slightly. "They're warm and comfortable... I like them..." She mumbled, sounding slightly offended.

Lydia shook her head in dismay. "Yes, I'm sure they are. But there is NO way I am letting you go out on your first date ever wearing them!" She hissed before dashing back towards the closet. "You better own at least one actual piece of decent female underwear!" She growled as she literally ripped her way through the clothing.

"Ugh. Yeah... The Converse shoebox." Stiles grumbled out.

Lydia pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to calm herself down for a few moments. She then reached for the shoebox, tearing the lip off and was actually pleasantly surprised by what she saw. "Wow, Stiles," She dipped a hand in, reaching for the pretty pink-laced piece and held it up with an approving grin. "I AM impressed."

Stiles blushed lightly. "Yeah... Melissa bought me those for my last birthday." She mumbled with a roll of her eyes. "Actually, she bought everything in that box... But I guess it could be worse -- she could have tried to have the sex talk with me." She added that last part with a fond smile.

Lydia smirked and nodded. "Well, the woman has very good taste." She stated as she eyed the rest of the box's contents. "I have chosen." She grabbed the pink-laced bra to match and quickly tossed them onto the bed alongside the dress.

Stiles glanced warily over at the underwear set. "I dunno..."

"I do." Lydia chirped with a sly grin.

Stiles frowned slightly, her heart racing. "B-but... It's a first date... I... He... He's not expecting me to... Is he?" Her eyes widened fully, like a deer caught in the headlights.

Lydia just wanted to gush at how very adorable the older girl looked right now. But right now, she knew that the girl needed her help; her reassurance. "To be honest, Stilinski, ALL men are after that one thing. Hell, even Aiden. BUT I think you're lucky, 'cause I don't think Derek's like that."

Stiles felt oddly comforted by her words. Though, it was probably because Stiles already knew that -- Derek certainly wasn't the ordinary guy. But that was okay, too. More than okay, in fact. Stiles nodded slightly, though, she had noticed the sullen expression pass through the redhead's bright, marble-green orbs. "You miss him -- don't you?" She asked softly. "Jackson, I mean." She added when the redhead shot her a look of confusion.

Lydia let out a tired sigh and walked slowly over to the bed before plopping herself down in the middle. "Sometimes..." She aired a small, though, somewhat bitter chuckle. "All the time..."

Stiles nodded, her frown deepening slightly. "Are you... Is he your mate?" She asked, sounding slightly wary.

Lydia pursed her lips for a brief moment, but still managed a small nod for response. "Anyway," She chirped, forcing herself to lighten up. "Quit stalling. Go change."

Stiles instantly glared at her. "I am NOT wearing THOSE." She grumbled out, pointing an accusing finger at the pink, lacey underwear.

Lydia scoffed. "Yes, you are. Or I'll scream and YOU can then try explain to your dad why all the windows in your house are shattered." She stated snootily, wearing a rather triumphant smirk.

Stiles' eyes only narrowed further. "But you said --"

"I know what I said." Lydia sighed. "But just because sex is off the table, doesn't mean you still can't get a little freaky..."

...Derek glared over at his uncle. "That's not gonna happen." He stated with all seriousness. Though, there was still a little doubt in the corners of his mind. "This is our first date." He repeated, as if trying to make a point.

"Oh, is THAT what this is?" Peter chimed, grinning in amusement when his nephew's eyes narrowed a little further on him.

Cora chuckled lightly. "Derek, there's NO way you're gonna be able to stop yourself." She quipped with a jest in her tone. She was clearly teasing, but she was also being serious here. "Seriously, I know that you've got good control for a werewolf, but you won't be able to resist."

Derek's glare shifted over to his so-called baby sister. Who's fricking side was she on here!? "Well, YOU seem to manage just fine with Isaac constantly trailing behind you like a little puppy." He grunted with a huff before turning his attention back to the pile of clothes on top of his bed.

Peter chuckled at that, clearly amused and clearly not wanting to help himself even if he could.

Predictably, Cora's own expression of amusement instantly dropped into one of anger and irritation. "Screw you, you dick!" She hissed, now glaring daggers at him. "You KNOW why I can't go there, again..." She muttered angrily under her breath as she then stalked out of his room, slamming the door loudly behind her.

Derek paused, letting out a loud sigh as the guilt quickly crept up on him.

"Well," Peter chirped. "THAT was just unnecessary."

Derek instantly glared back up at him. "You want me to start on YOU, too?" He asked -- well, more like warned.

Peter tilted his head to the side, staring curiously at his nephew. "What is this REALLY about?" He asked, his voice calm, but stern. "I know you, Derek. I know when you're feeling... Anxious." He frowned slightly. "Is this about the date? About Stiles?"

Derek let out another sigh as he plopped lazily down on the end of his bed. "What if I screw this up?" He croaked as he gazed helplessly at the floor.

Peter arched a brow, taking in his nephew's words. "THAT'S it?" He chuckled lightly as he slowly sauntered over and sat down beside the younger werewolf. "Oh, Derek, you REALLY haven't changed at all." He stated with a fond smile and a small shake of his head.

Derek arched a brow at him, looking somewhere between oddly annoyed and confused. "And what's THAT supposed to mean?" He asked, slightly defensive.

Peter chuckled lightly again. "Still SO worried about what people think of you."

"I don't care what other people think about me." Derek stated with a rather snooty hint in his tone.

Peter snorted quietly. "Not other people. The people you love, you idiot." He stated with a roll of his eyes. "And I wouldn't be so concerned with what Stiles thinks, if I were you." He smirked when the younger wolf shot him a curious look. "If she wasn't attached to you, I don't think she'd repeatedly risk her life for you."

Derek smiled slightly at that. "Yeah. But Stiles is the kind of person who would risk her life for anyone she deemed worthy of humanity."

Peter's smirk widened slightly as he noticed the small, but bright twinkle in his nephew's orbs as he spoke about the young human. "True." He nodded in agreement. "But she agreed to go out with you -- didn't she?" He smirked smugly at that. "See my point here?"

Derek couldn't help smirking, even if it was barely an acknowledged smirk. "Yeah. I see..."

...Lydia let out a loud and frustrated huff. "Will you just hurry up and lemme see!?" She barked as she tapped furiously on the bathroom door just to be annoying, but consistent, at least.

"Promise not to laugh." Came Stiles muffled replied. "I haven't worn a dress since I was 6 years old."

Lydia rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Yes. I promise." She vowed, her tone filled with bored. "Just come out. We have, like, 20 minutes until he shows up."

"Ugh. Fine." Stiles muttered before finally opening the door, slowly.

Lydia took a single step back, her eyes widening in both surprise and slight astonishment. "Oh..." She breathed, her hands placed softly over her slightly gape mouth.

Stiles frowned, instantly assuming the worst. "What? Is it bad? I still look like a boy -- don't I?" She asked with a pout.

"What?" Lydia breathed, still slightly distracted. "No! What? God, no! Stiles..." She shook her head in disbelief before taking the entire appearance in properly. "You look..."

Stiles arched a brow, now looking slightly worried. "I look...?" She urged warily.

Lydia smiled brightly. "Like a fucking model and I hate you."


	42. Chapter 42

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You look indescribably beautiful."

Stiles smiled lightly as she stared at her reflection in the mirror nailed to the inside of her closet door. If she was being honest, she really did think she looked rather odd in a dress. But then again, as she had said, it HAD been a while since she last had, which was probably the reason why she felt so strange. However, it wasn't a bad kind of strange feeling, not really, not at all. If she was being honest again -- and if she wasn't tooting her own horn here -- she thought she looked -- well, pretty. She looked like a girl, an actual girl.

"Here," Lydia picked up her black flat shoes from beside the bed and handed them over to the older girl. "I already text Aiden and told him to bring me another pair when he comes to pick me up." She explained when receiving an slightly confused look. "Because there is absolutely NO way in Hell that you're wearing whatever the heck THEY are." She stated pointedly as she motioned down to the brunette's battered black sneakers.

Stiles merely rolled her eyes, but did as she was told. She knew there really was no point in trying to argue with the incredibly stubborn and outspoken redhead. Quickly, she slipped off her sneakers and socks before pulling on the flats and to her surprise, they weren't too uncomfortable.

"Hmm." Lydia hummed, her eyes raking over the older girl's appearance.

"PLEASE don't make me wear makeup, as well." Stiles all, but begged.

Lydia rolled her eyes, though, smirking lightly. "Of course not... Just a little mascara and lipgloss. That's all, I promise." She stated, holding up her two crossed fingers for emphasis.

Stiles let out an exasperated huff. "Fine." She mumbled. That didn't sound too bad, at least.

Lydia smiled before reaching into the pocket of her red sweater. "Just something to bring out those eyes. Because they really are pretty. Besides, Derek seems to like you just the way you are and you've actually got a figure under all those clothes you wear, so you pretty much did all the work for me already."

Stiles rolled her eyes, but couldn't help blushing a little...

...Peter arched a brow at his nephew. "You're going to wear THAT shirt? A boring, old Henley?"

Derek simply shot his uncle a glare. "It's the newest one I have... And the cleanest. So shut up."

"But a Henley? REALLY?" Peter shook his head in dismay. "You should wear a button-up... So that Stiles can rip it off you later." He mumbled that last part quickly, though, unable to hold back a smug smirk.

"How 'bout I rip off your face right now, instead?" Derek asked, his voice perfectly calm. Though, he was still glaring, of course.

Peter chuckled lightly. "Oh, come on, don't be like THAT." He cooed, clearly still teasing. Because, let's face facts here; when wasn't he?

Derek sighed tiredly as he pulled on his leather jacket over his favourite red Henley. "Look, I told you already; it's a first date... And it's not like that... Not with Stiles." His voice lowered slightly on that last part as he frowned to himself.

Peter nodded, a genuine smile slapped across his smug shit face, for once, in like, EVER. "Fair enough..."

...Chris was way, way beyond bored by now. And the worst part was that he couldn't even kill the werewolf. Well, not yet, anyway. They still needed her. Though, he already suspected that he wouldn't be the one ending her life. Unfortunately. As much as he would like to. And he really did. And as he made his way back down into his basement with yet another steaming, hot mug of coffee, he wondered if he could have a little fun instead. Besides, it took A LOT to kill a werewolf or even hurt an Alpha. Which was actually something he was grateful for right now. It simply meant that he could have his fun all the longer. And THAT made him... Happy? Well, maybe not the right word here -- he liked to think himself compassion -- but something pretty darn close.

"Well, I AM impressed." Silver croaked, her throat feeling completely dry and burning slightly. Her body was still healing, slowly, but surely. Though, she was still in a lot of pain, which of course, she was never show on the outside.

Chris slowly took his seat a couple of feet opposite the one she was bound to by thick chains. "Oh?" He arched a brow as he calmly sipped at his fresh coffee.

Silver smirked lightly and nodded. "I've heard all about you and your family. Chris... Argent." She spat the name out venomously, though while shooting him a wicked grin.

"Is that so?" Chris asked, seeming completely bored.

Silver nodded again, her grin slowly widening. "I know your cousin; Amelia." She let out a low, but clearly amused chuckle. "Well, I KNEW her, anyway."

Chris merely stared back at her. Kate had told him that Amelia had been taken by a werewolf, though, no one knew which one. Not until now, anyway. And as much as he wanted to REALLY kill (or at least torture) this werebitch right now, somehow, he managed to contain himself. Well, just barely, anyway.

Silver grinned. "She got stuck in my teeth... But she WAS a sweet, little thing."

Chris simply huffed out a laugh. "Y'know why I'm not bothered right now?" He asked all too casually.

"Why?" Silver asked, quirking a curious brow.

Chris smiled. "Because I'll bet you my left ass cheek that the second we have no use for you, YOU'RE the one who's gonna be stuck in BOTH Scott or Derek's teeth when they finally done with you." He stated calmly. Though there was a smug tint to his tone, no matter how hard he tried to act smoothly here.

Silver arched a brow. "Oh, you really think so?" She asked calmly. Though, her expression showed pure amusement.

"Oh, I REALLY do." Chris replied calmly with a nod as he took a few larger gulps of the cooled down beverage.

Silver smirked. "Well, then, I'll take THAT exciting bet."

Chris scoffed lightly. "Figures you'd be a gambling girl." He muttered, though, clearly humouring her.

Silver chuckled lightly. "Hey, didn't Peter off your sister? And now you two have got some kind of bromance thing going on. What's THAT all about?" She chirped, shooting him a smug smirk.

Chris' jaw tightened slightly as he fought the urge to maim her right there. "Well, you know what they say; 'keep your enemies closer.'"

Silver grinned. "Ah, of course." She nodded, her eyes dancing with cruel amusement. "'Better the devil you know'..."

...Stiles' felt her heart begin to race as she stared down at her iPhone.

From: Sourwolf --  
'I'm at your front door.  
Lemme in, Bambi.  
:)'

A smiley face? Seriously? From Derek? From Derek Hale? This was literally like, a first time thing. Ever. Was it weird? A little. But good weird. Yeah, good weird. It must have been good weird if Stiles was feeling a little, well, fuzzy inside. Because she totally was right now. And 'Bambi'? Like, what? Stiles didn't even know why the hell that made her smile like the total dork that she was.

"By THAT cutesy, little grin plastered across your pretty, little noggin, I take it that Der-Bear's here?" Lydia piped up literally out of fucking no where and making Stiles nearly squeal.

"Lydia! Shush! He'll hear you!" Stiles hissed.

"Oh, come on, Stiles. Don't be coy." Lydia cooed, shooting her a sly grin.

Stiles scowled back at the redhead. "I meant that he'll know about the stupid nickname." She grumbled out before shoving her iPhone into her bra and shuffling out of her bedroom.

Lydia simply grinned as she continued after her.

Stiles paused at the door and turned to the redhead before mouthing a silent "How do I look?"

Lydia smiled fondly at the older girl, seeing the nervousness creeping up in her adorable, doe eyes. "Perfect." She mouthed back, giving her a double thumbs up for emphasis.

Stiles smiled faintly and then opened the front door before she could let herself hesitate and indeed, there was Derek, standing with his hands behind his back and wearing those pretty clothes with that pretty face of his. Stiles felt her heart race a little faster as she took him in without even realising, her eyes slightly widened.

And in return, Derek really couldn't help staring right back at her. Though, he looked slightly surprised, his brow raised a little. He wasn't sure how long he'd been simply staring at her, but he couldn't really bring himself to care. She really did take his breath away.

After a few more moments, Stiles finally forced herself to look away from him. And also somehow, she even managed to speak. Though, she really didn't know how, she was just grateful. "So... What'd you think?" She asked, motioning down to her (rare) attire.

Derek smiled slightly, unable to help himself. "You look like a girl." Besides, he knew she had a good sense of humour. And he could tell by the feather-light stutters of her pulse that she was a little nervous. And he understood that. A lot. In fact, right now, he was practically fighting the urge to rip that pretty, little dress right off of her. But that would be bad. On so many levels. Is what he told himself, anyway.

Thankfully, Stiles relaxed, scoffing loudly at him and even smiling back a little. "Yeah, well... Courtesy of Lydia."

Derek smirked lightly. "Yeah. Hi, Lydia. I know you're standing behind the door."

"Ugh." Lydia scoffed loudly before revealing herself. "Y'know the whole smelling people thing is kind of gross." She stated snootily.

Derek's smirk widened. "Uh-huh... But also, I could see your shadow under the door."

Lydia simply glared back at him. And in that moment, she was really grateful that her boyfriend had perfect timing as he suddenly up at the end of the driveway.

Stiles arched a brow as he eyes landed on the vehicle. "He got a new car?"

"Yep. I didn't have the heart to tell him that Jackson owned exactly the same model." Lydia stated with a shrug, but both Stiles and Derek could see the pain in her bright, marble-green orbs.

"Uh-huh. He stole it -- didn't he?" Stiles rolled her eyes, pretending she hadn't noticed. She knew that the redhead didn't really like to share her emotions. Even with the people closest to her. Not that Stiles was that close to her. Well, she was. Just not as close as Allison was with her. But that was okay. Because Stiles understood. Because Stiles had Scott. And she really was grateful for that.

Lydia shrugged all too casually as she made her way passed the two and down the pathway. "Eh, 'stole', 'borrowed' -- same thing, really." She chirped sweetly as she sauntered over to the Porsche and hopped in without a second glance.

Stiles simply glared after her. If her dad ever found out her friends were stealing cars, he would kill her as well as them!

Derek seemed to understand her internal dilemma, but really, he couldn't help smiling slightly in amusement. "Stiles," He called softly, grabbing her attention before finally pulling his hands from behind his back to reveal a single red rose.

Stiles' eyes widened slightly as she stared at the rose, feeling slightly surprised. "Wow... I never figured you for the romantic type." She smiled slightly, letting him know that she was pleasantly surprised and not at all freaked out. Because okay, he was seriously being fucking adorable right now. It so wasn't even fair anymore.

Derek's smiled widened into a small smirk. "Yeah, well, I'm more than just a sour wolf."

And Stiles really had to chuckle at that as she took the rose from him, even noticing that the thorns were removed. Which meant that either he had someone remove them or he had removed them himself. And either way, it made Stiles want to kiss the fuck out of him. Maybe later, anyway. So for now, instead she settled with a rather bashful: "Thank you."

Derek smiled slightly to himself, noticing her flushed cheeks. "Oh, and one more thing;"

The last time Derek had said those words to her, he had literally smacked her face into the driver's wheel of her own damn Jeep. So understandable, she flinched slightly as he leaned closer. Although, when she felt his warm hands gently cup her cheeks and his even warmer lips softly press to her own, she immediately relaxed, even leaning closer into him. Maybe even melting slightly. On both the inside and outside.

The kiss was short, but sweet, forcing himself to pull away, Derek rested his forehead against her own, his gaze intent and glued to her own, half-lidded. "You look indescribably beautiful."

...Because somehow -- much to Stiles' heart-melting surprise -- he seemed to know just how much that word meant to her: 'beautiful'.


	43. Chapter 43

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 'That mouth is evil!'

"I, uh," Stiles was still nervous, but a good nervous. She felt slightly giddy, excited, which she believed to be normal. At least, she hoped. But sourwolf seemed to be full of surprises. Pleasant surprises. In fact, Stiles was rather amazed by his gentlemanly behaviour when he had opened the passenger's side of his Camera for her before walking around to the driver's side and hoping in after her. And she was still kind of trying to process the moment where he had called her beautiful. "I hope I'm not too dressed up... I mean, I know it's just a summer dress, but it's still pretty dressed up for me." And why the hell did now have to be the time she couldn't stop rambling on like an idiot.

Derek briefly glanced over at her, smiling slightly before turning his attention back to the road. "No. You look perfect." And he really didn't have to look at her to know she was blushing, not when he could simply smell the blood rising to the surface of her cheeks. His nose twitched slightly, as did the corners of his lips.

And again, Stiles was surprised. Although pleasantly so. Because -- well, just when the hell was ever Derek so... Blatantly flirtatious, for one thing? At least, Stiles thought he was flirting with her. Though, he seemed pretty genuine to her. Like he actually wanted her to believe the pretty words coming out his pretty mouth. 'Ugh. Do NOT start thinking about his mouth right now! That mouth is evil! ...Delicious, but evil! Ugh! Stop me!' She swallowed silently and then let out a sigh to fill the silence. "So, where are we going?" She asked curiously, again, to fill the silence. It so wasn't fair right now, not when the stupid werewolf seemed so calm, collected and confident. Three things she really wasn't known for herself. 'Stupid werewolves...'

Derek's smile widened into a small smirk. "You'll see." Was all he said, not even bothering to look at her.

Stiles eyes narrowed slightly. "I don't like surprises." She countered, because, okay, she kind of enjoyed being difficult just for the sake of it sometimes. Especially with the most sour wolf around Beacon Hills.

Derek huffed out a small chuckle. "Tough."

Stiles' eyes narrowed a little further. "I don't think I like you anymore." And fuck, she really did feel embarrassed for saying that the moment she had heard herself saying it out loud. And instantly, her cheeks flushed heavily once again.

Derek finally glanced over at her and smirked that usual smug shit smirk that sometimes really did kind of remind Stiles of Peter. "But you liked me before -- right?" He asked, clearly teasing her. "Good to know." He stated simply before turning his gaze back to the road again.

But for once, Stiles decided to step up. He obviously liked her, too. Especially if she was currently on a date with him. A date that he had asked of her. So why should she be 'coy' -- as Lydia had put it? "Well, if I didn't like you, I wouldn't have agreed to this date, would I?" She countered back, arching a rather smug brow.

Derek smiled at that, slightly amused still. "Well, I'm glad you did." He said, his voice low and as soft as his gaze as it flickered briefly over to her.

And again, Stiles felt God damn fucking beaten. He really did have an answer for everything. An answer that made her feel like she was crumbling on the outside and melting slowly on the inside. And those God damn incredibly, intense eyes of his really did not help her cause, at all...

"...So, I got a call from Scott on my way over to Stilinski's." Aiden stated, glancing briefly over to his pretty redhead before turning his attention back to the road ahead.

Lydia arched a brow, clearly interested. "Oh? Anything on Silver yet?" She asked, getting that knowing feeling she always seemed to have, deep in her mind, and in her gut.

Aiden smiled, looking ever impressed with his girl. "As a matter of fact, he said that on his way over to his mom's house tonight, Deucalion was waiting at the end of the street for him."

Lydia's eyes widened instantly. "What!?" She hissed. "What the fuck did HE want!?" She demanded.

"He said that he knows Silver and he knows who she's working for and that he wants to help us." Aiden explained. "And that's all he said. He wanted to talk to the entire pack. Scott's arranged a meeting for tomorrow."

Lydia looked rather outraged. "Are you fucking serious!? What the fuck is McCall thinking!? Ugh! What am I even saying!? He's NEVER thinking!" She roared, glaring angrily out of the passenger's window.

"Okay, breathe, baby." Aiden said, his voice calm, hoping to calm her as well.

Lydia thankfully took his advice for once, pausing her ranting and taking a deep breath to collect herself. "Okay," She said, her voice calm now. "Since they're having dinner at Melissa's tonight, I'll just have to rip Scotty a new hole tomorrow morning. Bright and fricking early..."

...Stiles eyes widened as Derek finally pulled up on a quiet, little street with only one little building placed in the middle, brightly lit up and so very pretty. "Oh, my God." She sucked in an excited breath as she read the name of the restaurant; 'Jasmine's Palace.' How the hell did he even know? "I LOVE Turkish food!" She all, but squealed. "My mom used to take here all the time!" She said, turning to face him.

Derek smiled and nodded. "Yeah, uh, my mother used to bring my sisters and I here, too. And I may have asked Scott what your favourite kind of food was." He added that last part with a rather sheepish grin.

Stiles smirked slightly. "You 'may' have?" She teased, clearly enjoying the payback. Revenge is very sweet, indeed.

Derek rolled his eyes, but couldn't help smirking slightly, too. "He told me about your mother bringing you here as a kid, so it was kind of perfect... Like you."

And just when Stiles thought she had won, he had trumped her, again! Stiles stared blankly back at him, though, she could feel her cheek flushing once more. "Ugh." She huffed, giving his shoulder a playful shove before taking her seatbelt of an reach for her door.

Derek snapped out of his little stupor and was out of the car and opening the door for her in a matter of seconds.

Stiles jumped slightly, mostly surprised, again. "I'll never get used to that." She stated with a hearty chuckle.

Derek shot her a look of confusion as he held out a hand for her. "What -- the werewolf speed thing or the me acting like an actual human being thing?" He asked, looking slightly amused now. Although, in the back of his mind, he really did kind of regret acting like a complete dick to her for the passed, well, ever.

Stiles chuckled lightly as she placed her hand in his and hopped out of the car. "Well, I was talking about the speed thing. But now that you mention it..." She shot him a small grin, letting him know she was only teasing again.

Derek merely rolled his eyes and smirked as he locked his precious baby.

Stiles couldn't help smiling like a fool to herself as he kept his hand firmly in hers, leading the both over the restaurant. And as they entered, she was pleasantly surprised again when the place looked exactly how she remembered, literally nothing had changed. Not even the fricking staff, she was sure. Especially when one familiar-looking man, though fairly older now, came sauntering over to them with the widest and most welcoming smile she had literally ever seen.

"Derek!" The man was considerably short, maybe barely over 5 and a half feet, but had the most warming and kind, dark chocolate brown orbs.

Derek shot the Turkish man a pleasant smile. "Hey, Steve."

Stiles arched a brow. 'Steve? Seriously? ...Okay.'

Steve's smiled widened as his gaze drifted over to the girl. "Ah, who is THIS lovely lady?" He asked, briefly shooting the younger man a clearly impressed slash approving look.

Stiles instantly blushed, instantly cursing her mentally for doing so also.

Derek smirked to himself before speaking up. "This is Stiles." He said, then turning to Stiles. "Stiles, this is Steve."

"Stiles?" Steve arched a brow, shooting her a curious look. "Stilinski?"

Stiles smiled politely and nodded. "Uh, yeah. My dad's the Sheriff. And, uh, I used to come here a lot with my mom." She explained.

Steve nodded eagerly, a bright smile slapped across his olive features. "Ah, yes, I remember you. Little Gamora." He said, shooting her a fond smile. "And I'm VERY sorry for your loss." He stated with all sincerity. "Your mother was a lovely lady."

Stiles flinched slightly, but quickly composed herself. It wasn't his fault. He didn't know. She understood. But that didn't mean it still didn't hurt like a complete son of a bitch. "Yeah. That's me... And, thanks." She simply went with smiling and nodding instead, somehow actually pulling it off.

Derek frowned slightly, because, he's a stupid werewolf and of course he noticed. But instead of making matter worse, he simply decided to move things along, for her sake, of course. He could literally sense her discomfort right now. "So, you got any free tables?" He asked after quietly clearing his throat -- and he would probably never know just how grateful Stiles was for that. "I'm sorry, I know it's short notice and it's a Friday --"

"No, no! Don't be silly!" Steve chimed, throwing his hands up in the air. "Come, come! I make room for you, it's no problem at all!" He said, waving a hand a motioning for them both to follow him.


	44. Chapter 44

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "There's defintely a catch, here."

"This place is just like I remember." Stiles glanced around the restaurant; it was rather busy, but still had a calm and cosy sort of atmosphere.

"Yeah." Derek nodded, glancing briefly around. "Steve's big on keeping up old traditions. The guy's nearly 65 years old." He smiled lightly when her eyes widened in shock. "Yeah, I know; he really doesn't look it. Guys got some good genes. He once told me that his grandfather wanted to kill himself, because he was depressed after his wife's death. So he poisoned himself with snake's venom and the guy still didn't die."

"Wow." Stiles mumbled, her eyes slightly widened. What a lovely first story for a first date. Though, Stiles wanted to chuckle in amusement at that thought. Because she really wasn't a normal girl, anyway. So who cares if this wasn't exactly a normal date? Not her, that's who. And hopefully, he didn't either. Though, he didn't seem to. "By the way, what's with his name? Steve? Really?" She asked, now slightly amused.

Derek chuckled lightly. "Oh, yeah. Well, he's 9 years older than his wife, so when he first started dating her back in the 70s, her mother really didn't approve. And to make things a little easier, they tried to pass him off as an Italian, since his wife's father was half Italian. So, that's where the name came from. Plus, he said that people kinda have trouble pronouncing his real name, so it just kinda stuck, I guess."

"What is his real name?" Stiles asked, staring curiously back at him.

"Mustafa." Steve chimed as he sauntered up to them with his usual bright grin slapped across his barely wrinkled face and a small tray of drinks balanced on an open palm.

Stiles smiled instantly. "Kinda sounds like 'Mufasa'." She chuckled lightly, seeing the slightly confused look on the werewolf's face. "I'm not even gonna bother asking YOU." She teased, shaking her head at him. "Have YOU seen the Lion King, Mustafa?"

Steve grinned widely. "Madame, I probably know that film off by heart by now." He chuckled lightly at her surprised expression. "My younger daughter -- she's around your age now -- but she used to make me watch it with her every, single night. And she always calls me 'Mufasa'." He added with a fond smile. "Even now she does." He shook his head lightly.

Stiles chuckled. "She sounds seriously awesome." And she really did. In fact, she reminded Stiles a little of herself.

Derek smiled to himself. He loved how easily she could get along with people or even fricking talk to people. It reminded him of how he used to be, who he was before, when he was her age. But now, it seemed to fucking long ago that it ached him to the very core.

Steve chuckled, beaming a smile back at the young woman. "Ah, now," He placed the tray onto the table. "Two beers," He placed a glass bottle off beer and an empty glass down beside them each. "And two glasses of water." He added, placing the waters down after before lifting the empty tray off of the table and tucking it under his arm. "Now, are interested in a starter? Maybe some meze?" He asked, arching a brow as he glanced between them.

Stiles' eyes widened eagerly. "You mean like, the Turkish version of a Spanish Tapas? Like, many, many plates of food?"

Derek chuckled. "Yeah. Give us the full house."

Stiles' eyes widened even further, if that was even possible. "Oh, my God, really?"

Derek smirked. "Yeah. I know how much you love your food."

"Ah, a lady after my own heart." Steve chimed in, smiling widely.

Stiles blushed lightly.

"Besides, it's not like it ever goes anywhere." Derek added, clearly motioning to her slender figure.

To which Stiles felt her cheeks flood all the more.

Steve chuckle lightly. "Okay, and what about for your main courses?"

Stiles arched a brow over at Derek. "I'm not really fussy. I'll literally eat anything edible... And cooked." She added with a sheepish smile.

Derek chuckled and nodded. "What'd you recommend?"

Steve grinned widely. "Ah, well, the kofte with a side of pitta bread, salad and deep-fried sweet potatoes is VERY popular at the moment.

"Wait, that's the rice, mint, herbs and minced meat wrapped up in the vine leaves -- right?" Stiles asked, causing Derek to raise a rather impressed brow.

Steve's grin widened all the more as he nodded. "Ah, VERY good, madame."

Stiles smiled. "I used to order it every single time I came here." She explained.

Steve nodded. "I remember. I'm impressed you do, as well."

"Uh, yeah, whatever you want." Derek nodded. "I'm not fussy, either."

"No kidding." Stiles mumbled, shooting him a smug "werewolves eat anything, even dead carcasses" look.

Derek simply decided to ignore her. Though, he was also fighting back the urge to smirk.

"Excellent." Steve chimed. "I'll bring your meze over in a moment." He stated before sauntering off again.

"Real subtle, by the way." Derek mumbled, finally shooting her a playful glare.

Stiles chuckled. "I'm real subtle. You should know this by now."

"Oh, believe me, I do." Derek countered, smirking slightly.

This time, Stiles shot him a playful glare in return. "So, I take it that you still come her a lot?" She asked, genuinely interested.

Derek nodded. "Yeah. Uh, it's just a nice reminder of the past." He stated all too casually, but Stiles could see it in his downcast eyes; the lingering pain, a pain that sadly, she understood all too well.

Stiles nodded softly. "Yeah." She mumbled. "I get that."

"Besides, I still get discount, 'cause Steve and my mother were good friends." Derek added with a cheeky, little smile.

Stiles scoffed out a chuckle at that. "Your mom really did know just about everyone in Beacon Hills, huh?" She asked with a grin.

Derek let out a breathy chuckle. "Yeah. Kinda like your father."

Stiles shot him another playful glare. "Always got an answer for everything." She mumbled under her breath, knowing full well that he could hear her as she slowly took a few sips of her glass of beer. "It's really UN-becoming, y'know?" She arched a brow at him, her tone slightly snooty.

Derek smirked, clearly amused. "Yeah. Now you know how I feel." He said, obviously referring to her.

"Oh, please." Stiles scoffed. "I don't ALWAYS have an answer for everything..." She trailed off sheepishly.

Derek's smirk widened. "You know you do." He said. "You're literally the most sarcastic person I've ever met."

"Awh, you really mean that, Der-Bear?" Stiles grinned innocently, biting back the laugh bursting to rip passed her pursed lips.

Derek rolled his eyes and bit back his retort as Steve began to make him way over with another large tray balanced expertly on his right palm...

...Deucalion wanted to laugh out loud at this fool standing before him; this pathetic excuse for a werewolf. And sure, he had done many terrible things himself in the past, but he had never murdered one of his own blood. "You are seriously wasting your time if you think that I'm going to talk to you, about anything. I don't trust you as much, as Scott and his pack don't trust me and personally, I don't like you, either."

Peter stared back at the older werewolf, his brows raised as he leaned casually back in the hunter's living room couch. "Well," He chirped. "That's a little mean, don't you think?"

Deucalion scoffed loudly as Chris sauntered in, handing him a coffee. "Boys," Chris piped up, his tone as stern as his scowl as he glanced between them. "Play nice, now." He chirped, grinning widely before sauntering over to Peter and handing him one of the beers left in his right hand. "So," Chris glanced curiously between the werewolves, one of who was glaring at the other, while the other simply smirked in amusement. "What're we talking about?"

"He's being mean." Peter stated, shooting the older werewolf a pointed look. "I'm not sure what his problem is... Not that I care." He shrugged casually before taking a few large gulps of his beer.

Chris rolled his eyes. "Why are you back here?" He asked the other werewolf, shooting him a sceptical look. "I thought Scott and Derek told you never to come back here in return for sparing your life."

Deucalion nodded. "They did. But I have no pack. I'm no longer an Alpha. I'm no longer a threat." He explained. "And I have some information on Silver that you may need."

"What'd you want?" Chris asked, still slightly suspicious. "I mean, there's definitely a catch, here. There's no way you're giving up this information for free."

"Of course." Deucalion answered honestly. "But that's something I'd also liked to address with the entire pack."


	45. Chapter 45

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Are you gonna kiss me goodnight or not?"

"So," Stiles began warily as she picked lightly at the several small meze dishes. "I know this probably isn't the time to bring it up -- but I... I saw your mom..."

Derek arched a brow and waited until he had swallowed his pitta bread before responding. "When you astral projected?" He asked, his voice calm and casual, as if they were merely discussing their day.

"What? No." Stiles shot him a slightly confused look. "When I, uh... When I poked around in your head last night." She mumbled out. She still felt guilty about that one. But then again, she was simply an idiot of life, she knew this, she'd known this for most of her life now and it was just something she accepted.

Derek nodded, shooting her an understanding look. He even smiled slightly, much to Stiles' surprise. "What'd you see?" He asked, looking rather interested.

"Uh," Stiles was still a little wary. She knew how much Derek had loved his mother, how she had literally been the center of his universe. And she knew that feeling well, too. "Well, I," And also, she really didn't know how the heck to get the words out properly. "I saw her face... Saw her hugging you... Saw her smile." Stiles smiled slightly to herself. "She was beautiful... Kinda like you." She flushed lightly, her bashful gaze now glued to her half empty glass of beer.

And obviously, Derek really couldn't help smirking slightly. Though, he managed to cover it well with a smile instead. "Yeah... It's just a werewolf thing." And it was true really. And because Derek really wasn't bothered by his appearance (though, he did often use it to his advantage). But no. It wasn't that. It was the fact that Stiles clearly found him attractive. Of course, he already kind of knew that, though -- what with the whole making out thing. But still, hearing her say it, that really did something to him. He didn't know what exactly, but he knew it was damn well good.

Stiles scoffed, though, wearing a small smile. "Then what happened to Peter?" And again, she really couldn't help herself. Besides, it saved her from any further embarrassment.

Derek chuckled at that, his pretty orbs lit up in amusement. "I, uh," He looked a little more seriously at her now. "I saw your mother, too." He smiled fondly. "You think about her a lot." He knew what that felt like.

Stiles smiled weakly and nodded. By now, everytime her mother was mentioned, her throat seemed to automatically form a large lump that ached so fucking unbearable. "Yeah." She mumbled out before reaching for another pitta bread. Of course, it wasn't Derek's fault. It was her stupid fault, again. Why the hell did she even bring it up!? 'Ugh! I hate myself. Seriously.'

And of course, Derek seemed to know just what was going on her head. "Y'know they have ice-cream here that you stretch like gum. I always forget what it's called, though." He frowned slightly, looking a little annoyed by that.

Stiles arched a brow. She knew what he was doing. And while her heart kind of melted a little at his attempt to cheer her up, she really couldn't help chuckling slightly. "Maras dondurmasi." She chimed with a smug smirk.

Derek arched a brow, clearly impressed by her perfect accent and her absolutely perfect voice. 'Ugh... Help me. Someone. Anyone?' And there was absolutely no way his dick just twitched. Nope. Oh, fuck. Who was he even trying to fool here anymore? "You know Turkish?" He asked, shooting her a look somewhere between disbelief and surprise.

Stiles shrugged lightly. "Eh. A little." She took a few small sips of her beer. "My mom was an interpreter, so she spoke a few languages. And I guess I kinda picked up a little along the way."

Derek smiled with interest. "What other languages do you know?"

Stiles chuckled lightly. "Uh, Spanish, French, I learned in school. A little Turkish and German. But I totally kick ass with Swedish. I seriously effing love the Swedish language."

Derek chuckled at that. "Impressive."

Stiles grinned. "What about you, big guy -- you know any other languages besides grouchy?" She asked with a teasing glint in her eye.

Derek shot her a sarcastic look. "Ha-ha." He chirped rather dryly.

Stiles' grin merely widened, her eyes gleaming with amusement.

Derek rolled his eyes before answering. "My father was half Spanish, so I know a little of the language. And I know that Latin is pretty much dead these days, but my mother wanted my sisters and I to learn it."

"Wow. Latin?" Stiles arched a brow, looking intrigued. "Lydia knows a little, but she's too lazy to teach me... Could you maybe teach me?"

"If you want." Derek shrugged, like it was nothing, but he knew it totally was.

Stiles' eyes widened excitedly. "Awesome!" She chirped. "I'm kinda doing a thing," She explained with a sheepish smile when he arched an amused brow at her. "Scott and I made a pact -- he vowed to finish high school and actually get into at least one college and I vowed to learn at least a hundred different languages before I die." She chuckled slightly at the memory of that night that had sealed their vows with a pinky hook.

Derek smiled at that. "Well, Peter knows Arabic. And we all know how much he loves the sound of his own voice, so I'm sure he'd be more than willing to teach you." He added with a roll of his eyes.

Stiles chuckled lightly. "Y'know what? I think I'll ask him." She said. "Besides, no one is more annoying than ME." She stated smugly, feeling oddly proud about that. "Peter's said so himself, many times before."

Derek scoffed, his eyes lit up in amusement. "I'll be sure to remember that." He said. "The next time he annoys the hell outta me -- which, let's face it; will probably be the very next time I see him -- I'll just use you as my secret weapon."

Stiles didn't really know what to make of that. On one hand; this had been the most she had ever heard sourwolf speak in a single night. And then in the other; there was something about the way he had just said that; something about the way he was looking at her as he said it. 'Is he... Flirting with me again?' And by the tingle of her toes, she say her assumptions were accurate enough.

"So, are you regretting this yet?" Derek asked, trying to sound casual, which, okay, he knew he probably hadn't.

"No." Stiles frowned slightly. "Why would I?" She asked, looking confused. "Do you?" She then asked, looking a little worried. "I know I'm not exactly the most exciting person, but --"

"Stiles," Derek scowled lightly at her. "No." He said when she finally glanced back up at him. "That's not why I asked... I just, I..." He gulped silently, his own gaze averting to the table. "I don't wanna screw this up... I don't want you to hate me."

Stiles' frown only deepened. "Why would I hate you?" And she really was confused now.

Derek snorted quietly. "'Cause I'm a dick." He stated, tone slightly bitter as he glanced back up to her. "I was a complete dick to you, Stiles. And I know it's no excuse, but that was me trying to distance myself from you."

"You ARE a dick." Stiles rolled her eyes, though, grinning slightly. "Even if I'd never met you, I'd still be pretty much in the same boat of life." She chuckled lightly. "What with my best friend being a werewolf. And now this whole astral projection thing. Oh, and my dad being a cop."

Derek sighed and nodded. "Yeah, I know. But that doesn't mean I have to put you in danger, just 'cause you're around it anyway." His chest tightened at the mere thought. "Fuck, Stiles," He hissed quietly. "I don't know what the fuck I'd do if something bad happened to you. You have no idea how fucking scared I was all those times I nearly lost you. I let Gerard beat the hell out you, I let Peter get to you, I almost let Kate get to you, I let you do that stupid resurrection ritual, I let Silver almost drive you insane on top of nearly torturing you to fucking death. I'm not supposed to let anything happen to you."

And while Stiles was actually kind of touched by his little (rare) outburst, she was also slightly annoyed. "So... Is that all this is?" She asked, feeling her throat clench painfully. "The wolf in you feels bad for his stupid mate, so the reluctant human in you asks me out on a normal date to make it all better?" And while she wanted to be more annoyed, she was now slightly disappointed.

"What? No." Derek shot her a "what the fuck?" look. "That night I got arrested," He let out a frustrated sigh. "After I saw you for the time... I got home and the moment my mother saw me, she knew that something was different. And I didn't really know what the hell was going on, so I asked her... She told me that I found my true mate -- like the way real wolves choose one mate for life. She said that I was lucky, that it was rare. Even she never found her own. But she loved my father anyway." He smiled fondly at the memories of his parents cuddled up on the couch in front of the fireplace. "Look, the point is that I was supposed to keep you safe, keep my pack safe. And everytime I try, I just keep failing... Miserably." He chuckled bitterly. "I killed Boyd, for God sake."

Stiles glared. "That wasn't YOUR fault. It was that werehussy; Kali."

Derek smiled lightly. "'Werehussy'... I like it."

Stiles rolled her eyes, unable to help smirking a little. "Don't change the subject." She scowled when he merely shot her an innocently grin, though, she swore mentally when she felt her heart stutter. God, why the fuck did he have to have a smile like that? A smile that made her just want to literally melt. Ugh. "And okay, we lost a few dear to us, but you said it yourself; it was war and in war their are bound to be casualties. Besides, werehussy got what she deserved in the end. They all did... And okay, I'm still kinda resentful to the twins about the whole Boyd thing."

Derek scoffed. "Yeah. Everytime I see them I wanna rip their throats out." He grumbled.

Stiles grinned brightly. "With your teeth -- right? Why am I even asking?"

...Stiles really didn't know where the heck the night had gone or how the heck the time had flown by so fast. Okay, maybe she did know. Maybe it was because she was having a good time. In fact, she would go as far as to say that this was pretty much the best night she'd had in... Well, since forever, really. And even as midnight approached, Stiles still really wasn't ready to say goodbye. Again, her father was at the station, meaning that she would just be going back to an empty house. Something she told herself that she was used to after all these years, when really, it was still as lonely as it had first felt.

And then finally, as they stopped at her front door, Derek spoke up. "So, uh, how about a second date?"

"Yeah." Stiles smiled brightly and nodded. "I had a really good time tonight... Thank you." And why the heck couldn't she say it without blushing like a stupid virgin!? 'Ugh! Fuck my life!'

And thankfully, tonight, embarrassing Stiles was seemingly not on Derek's agenda tonight. And again, he would never know how truly grateful she was for that. "I'm glad."

And what? Was that it? Stiles frowned awkwardly. "So... Are you gonna kiss me goodnight or not?"


	46. chapter 46

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "'The wolf thing'?"

Did she even have to ask? Was his initial thought. But of course she had to. Which was okay. And which, okay, the werewolf had to admit, he thought was utterly adorable. And for a moment, Derek really couldn't help, but stare at her mouth as she nervously nibbled on the corners of her bottom lip. And that was of course until he felt his own lips tugging slowly upwards into a barely there smile. He moved closer then, shrinking what little space was left between them in the first place and placing a hand at the back of her neck, he finally leaned down.

Stiles' eyes fluttered and then closed fully as she felt his warm lips press softly to her own. It started as a slow, chaste kiss, but quickly turned into something more in a matter of seconds. Her hands slinked up, resting either side of his face. And fuck, if that damn stubble of his scratched the shit out of her own face, she really didn't give a crap, because damn, it really did feel good. And again, Stiles didn't really know what the heck she was doing -- besides Lydia (and Scott, that one time when they were like, 12 years old and both just wanted to know what it felt like... And okay, Danny, once, a couple of years ago, when they were both very, VERY drunk) -- she didn't have much experience in kissing or anything sexual experience at all really. Although, it seemed that the werewolf wasn't really all that bothered. In fact, he seemed to be enjoying himself almost as much as she was here. Maybe even as much as she was.

Derek rested his free hand on her waist, gently pulling her petite form as closely against his own as he possibly could. And when he felt her tongue flick out briefly against his bottom lip, he was pleasantly surprised. So it wasn't really his fault for letting out a low growl before parting his lips for her this time all too eagerly. He then slipped both his hands down to rest on their new favourite spot; her peachey, little ass. He then let out another low growl as he gently gripped her backside, pressing her hips up into his own.

Stiles knew she should have felt embarrassed by the small whining noise she made then, but right now, she just couldn't bring herself to give a fuck. Her hands slipped to his broad shoulders, giving the muscles there a hard squeeze in return before her hands then locked together behind his neck. And fuck, she could really get used to the whole growling thing. "Fuck," She breathed, her lips still barely apart from his. "I really don't know why that's so hott, but it REALLY is." And by this point, it really didn't matter if she blushed -- since she was feeling pretty fucking flushed already.

"What?" Derek whispered absentmindedly as he began to pepper her throat with feather-light kisses.

"You..." Stiles stammered slightly, her eyes fluttering and her heart racing even harder. "Growling like that..."

Derek smirked lightly as he gently nosed the spot right under her ear. "Yeah?" He mumbled, barely containing a grin now as he continued to let her scent assault his sensitive nose.

"Yeah..." Stiles mumbled, biting at her bottom lip nervously again.

"I'll be sure to remember that then." Derek said, finally pulling back to face her with another small smirk.

Stiles didn't know how it was possible, but she felt her cheeks heat up all the more. "Shut up." She grumbled, and with a roll of her eyes, she really couldn't help smiling slightly.

Derek's smirk widened. "Fine." He muttered before pressing his lips back to hers.

Stiles felt that she probably should have protested there, maybe throw him a comeback first. But whenever he kissed her, every other thought in her mind vanished and there was complete silence, serene and beautiful for someone with an over-active brain like hers. And to Stiles, that was more wonderful than anything. Well, besides actually kissing her sourwolf. 'Wait -- what? So, he's MY sourwolf now? ...Ugh. I am SO in trouble... Huh, and I don't even fucking care right now...'

Derek cupped her cheeks in his hands as he moved his mouth slowly over hers, the tip of his tongue flickering across the seam of her lips every so often. He pulled away reluctantly after a few more moments, though, mainly to let her breath. "God, how the is your skin so fucking soft?" He puffed out a small, but amazed chuckle against her lips before leaning forward and pecking them lightly a couple of times.

"I... I don't know." Stiles breathed, feeling her heart pound now, aching so bad, but in a good way, a really fucking good way. How the hell does someone even render someone speechless with such a fricking mind-blowing kiss, anyway!? Ugh! Her brain felt so fucking scrambled right now. Although, she didn't really care about that, either.

Derek smiled faintly, to himself as her eyes fluttered briefly, her breathing ragged. Then, giving her one last short, but sweet kiss, he let his hands slip slowly back to his sides. "I think we should stop." And yeah, okay, he didn't really think that. God, fuck, he really did just want to rip that pretty, little dress right off of her and see the even prettier, little present hiding underneath. But yeah, he thought he deserved at least some credit for his self-control here. Because damn, she really did look especially delectable tonight, all dressed up, just for him and damn, that really did do something else to him. Besides make his dick twitch again, of course. 'Ugh... Help me... I need to leave. As soon as possible or I really WILL screw this up before it's even started.' And well, he really did wish it was that simply. But by the look on her face, it seemed not.

"Oh... Okay." Stiles nodded, letting her own arms fall back to her sides and taking a small step back.

"Stiles," Derek almost whined her name -- he almost fricking whined, for crying out loud. "We don't have to rush anything. We have all the time in the world."

Stiles scoffed at that last part. "Yeah, because we don't almost always nearly die on a regular basis." She said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Derek frowned slightly at that. "Yeah, well, I'm not gonna let anything bad happen to you ever again. To any of you. I'd rather die first."

"Yeah, well, it's not your job to protect us anymore. It's Scott's -- remember? He's our Alpha now." Stiles huffed before turning to her front door, already pulling her keys out. And okay, she felt a little guilty for stooping that low, but what the actual hell, man!? It's not like she was actually going to go THAT far (not tonight, anyway).

"God damn it, Stiles," Derek let out a small, but clearly frustrated growl. He gently grasped at her occupied wrist and tugged her back towards him. And now, he really didn't want to spill his pathetic guts to her, but what other choice did he have here? He could tell by the look in her eyes that she thought he didn't want her, not really, and that fucking stung him like a bitch, more than she would ever know. "I want you. I do." More than you could ever fucking imagine. Is what he wished he could say. But he really didn't want to freak her out on top of everything else right now. "I just... Sometimes I want you a little too much..." He mumbled awkwardly, cursing himself mentally when he felt his own cheeks heating up now.

Stiles stared blankly back up at him for a few moments, her lips then slowly curling up into a small smile. "You mean... The wolf thing?" She asked timidly, feeling her own cheeks flushing again.

Derek arched a brow, looking slightly amused. "'The wolf thing'?" He asked, trying to sound less than impressed, but failing miserably.

"Yeah... When Scott first started trying to get freaky with Allison, he said that he almost shifted." Stiles explained, cursing herself mentally as she felt her cheeks heat up even more, if that was even fricking possible, which it apparently was. 'Ugh.'

"Well, then, yeah." Derek chuckled lightly at the surprised look she threw him there. "What?" He asked, wearing an innocent grin. "I don't know if you know this already, but you're kinda fucking beautiful, too."

And again with Stiles and her stupid, fricking blushing! 'Ugh!'


	47. Chapter 47

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 'God, I love you... Fuck.'

"You're seriously a fricking douchebag!" Stiles hissed as soon as she pulled her Jeep up outside sourwolf's building. "Why the hell did you wait until this morning to tell me!?" She asked, now glaring over at the werewolf.

Scott rolled his eyes at his over-dramatic best friend as he hopped off of his motorcycle. "Uh, MAYBE 'cause you were a LITTLE preoccupied." He shot her a sly grin.

Stiles simply glared at him. "You COULD have text me, at least!" She barked before brushing passed him and stalking towards the building.

"Stiles, c'mon, dude." Scott whined slightly as he quickly trailed behind her. "You've had a lot to deal with lately," He rolled his eyes again when she shot him that look, that look he knew all too well, that "I maybe human, but I can still kick your ass" look. He always seemed to know just what she way thinking. And vice versa, in fact. "It's got nothing do with you being human. Don't be ridiculous. You know it's never been about that. Not for me, at least. You're my best fricking friend forever, dude." He shot her his usual grin in return when she merely rolled her eyes. But he could also see her trying not to smile at his words. "I just figured that you deserved a normal night off. Plus, it was your first fricking date ever, dude! Seriously, we're talking about this later." He stated, shooting her a stern look.

Stiles rolled her eyes again, but couldn't help smiling to herself. The two best friends then shuffled into the elevator, making their way to the top floor; Derek's loft. Her heart began to race slightly at just the mere thought of seeing him again. And Stiles mentally cursed herself when she spotted Scott smirking smugly to himself from the corner of her eye. "Shut up." She grumbled out quickly, glaring down at the floor now.

Scott chuckled, unable to help himself. "Dude, I didn't even say anything." He stated, trying to be all innocent. Pff.

Stiles turned her glare to him instead then. "You don't have to say anything. It's written in your all up in stupid, werepuppy-jaw face." She grumbled.

Scott chuckled again, holding his hands up in surrender. "Okay, okay. I'm sorry. I won't say another word... But... Just tell me ONE thing before we reach the loft?" He shot her a pleading look.

"What?" Stiles narrowed her eyes suspiciously. And she was already regretting her decision to humour him.

"Did he try and rip your throat out? With his teeth?" Scott grinned widely. And there was a clear double-meaning to that, any fool could see it.

Stiles wanted to smile at that, she really did, he just knew her too well. But instead, she glared at him and quickly gave his shoulder a hard punch just as the elevator doors opened -- because, come on, he was being a smug shit. (And okay, she kind of deserved it after all the shit she had given him for being all corny with Allison, but the was totally different, anyway). She shot him one last glare when he only chuckled at her again before ripping the metal partition open and storming into the loft.

Scott trailed after her, rubbing his slightly saw shoulder and now glaring slightly at her. 'Damn. She even hits like a guy... Bitch must be working out again. That fricking hurt. And I'm a fricking werewolf here. Ugh.'

Stiles quickly made her way over to the couch and plopped down next to Isaac with a loud huff.

Isaac arched a brow at her. "Rough morning, sunshine?" He teased as he sipped at his steaming mug of coffee.

"No." Stiles grumbled. "Just an annoying one." She added, glaring over at her so-called best friend.

Scott shot her a smug smirk as he perched up on the edge of the table beside Cora.

"So," Cora chimed, smiling slyly over at the human. "You and Derek, huh?"

Stiles instantly shifted her glare onto the young she wolf. "If you want details, ask your brother, not me. I've already had all the annoying interrogation from one werewolf I can take." She stated rather calmly before snatching Isaac's coffee and taking a large gulp before then handing it back to him.

Isaac glanced down at his abused beverage, pouting slightly. "You contaminated it." He whined. "You always do this, Stiles! You know I have a problem."

"Like the little girl in Signs? Dude, seriously?" Scott arched a brow, clearly unimpressed with this new revelation.

Stiles rolled her eyes. "At least Isaac knows what 'contaminated' actually means, though." She scoffed, smirking in amusement as Isaac glared at her.

"Well, you're certainly in a good mood today." Cora stated, smirking smugly.

Stiles glared at her again. "I'm not in a good mood. I'm hyper. I'm always hyper." She grunted quietly. "Where is the sourwolf, anyway?"

Cora rolled her eyes this time. "He didn't trust Uncle Peter and Deucalion alone. He's bring them over here from Chris' place. And Chris is taking Allison away to Vegas for the weekend... Lucky bitch."

Stiles smirked and nodded. "So, what does Deucalion want?" She asked, glancing between Scott and Cora.

"He SAID that he wants to help us." Scott explained.

"But you don't believe him?" Stiles asked, knowing that suspicious look on his face all too well.

Scott shrugged. "He's got nothing to lose. And why would he ever lie." He added that last part with a sarcastic smirk.

Stiles smirked slightly, too. Though, she really did have a bad feeling about this. And she remembered what Cooter had told her. So she couldn't really ignore the bad feeling. "Well, I guess it wouldn't hurt to hear him out, either way. Since, y'know, we've basically got nothing here."

"What about the werewolf the broke into your house the other night?" Cora asked. "Derek told me." She stated when Stiles shot her a curious look.

"What!?" Scott demanded, his eyes narrowing. "Stiles! What the hell!? Why didn't you tell me!?"

"Because she was a little tongue-tied with my big brother." Cora mumbled, smiling sweetly when Stiles glared daggers at her.

"What werewolf?" Isaac asked, deciding to take the calm approach. He cared for Stiles, of course, but he could understand Scott's overprotective nature towards her.

Stiles let out a huff, the memory of the smug shit already annoying her. But then, Derek kissing her after that was totally worth the aggravation. And almost worth her entire fucking bedroom getting trashed. She really was still fucked off about that one. "No clue." She said. "But the dude trashed my fucking room."

Isaac frowned at that. "You think he was looking for something?"

Stiles arched a brow, giving him a "what'd you think?" look.

Isaac smiled sheepishly. "Besides you, obviously." He muttered.

Stiles rolled her eyes, letting out another puff of air. "I don't know." She shrugged lazily. "I don't think so, anyway. It looked like he was going through my stuff... And trying to piss me off."

"He was trying to get to know you." Scott muttered, a dark glare on his face. "Before he does whatever the hell he's planning to do to you."

Stiles arched a brow at that, looking slightly alarmed. "I kinda never thought of it like that... Wait, if YOU knew that then that means Derek did, too." She growled slightly in anger.

"Hey!" Scott glared at her. "I'm not stupid!"

Stiles simply scoffed.

"Scott McCall!" Lydia came darting out of the elevator with both the ex-Alpha twins following closely behind her. "What the actual fuckedy fuck!?" She barked, marching straight up to the Alpha with an expression that could kill, if possible.

Scott's eyes widened slightly as she stood right in front of him. "What!? What'd I do!?" He asked, looking like an adorable, lost, little werepuppy.

"Deucalion!? Really!?" Lydia snipped. "What is wrong with you!? He almost killed us all!"

"Uh, yeah. So did Aiden and Ethan." Scott stated with a pointed look.

"That was different and you know it! They had no choice!" Lydia snapped.

"Lydia, come on." Stiles couldn't help herself, it was always an automatic response for to defend her best friend; her brother. Even if she didn't always agree with him. "No one has made an decisions yet. Today all just about discussion. That's it. And you can have your say, just like everyone else."

Scott shot his best motherfucking friend a grateful smile, to which she returned with a smile of her own and a nod.

"Yes, exactly." And at the sound of that all too familiar British voice, groups' gazes all snapped over to where Deucalion stood just outside the elevator with Derek and Peter standing either side of ex-Alpha. "Very well said, indeed, Miss Stilinski. And lovely to see you again." He shot her a small, but polite smile.

Derek grit his teeth to keep his mouth shut at that. 'If he even thinks about it, I will END him.'

Peter arched a brow, noticing his nephew's sudden tenseness. But for once, he kept his humorous quips to himself. For now, anyway.

Stiles arched a brow as she noticed the ex-Alpha's usual sunglasses were absent, his bright blue orbs staring right back at her instead. Scott had told her what had happened -- how Jennifer; the Dorach restored his vision just so that he could see what he had done to her -- but still, it was a little surprising. And she was still kind of afraid of the guy. Though, not that, that would ever stop her from smacking his face off... With her bat. "Uh, yeah. Hi, dude." She muttered finally as she rose from the couch and moved to perch of the table between Scott and Cora.

"Hello, Scott." Deucalion shot the young Alpha a similar smile. "It's good to see you, too. And as hard as it maybe for you to believe this; I actually mean it."

Scott shot him a wary look, but nodded in acknowledgement anyway. He was willing to be civil. After the way the ex-Alpha had surrender without a further fight, the guy had actually gone up a little in Scott's estimations... A little. "So," He began. "Why are you here? Really?"

Peter quickly made himself comfortable, kicking back on the couch beside Isaac as Derek moved towards the table, standing beside Cora.

Deucalion's expression turned slightly serious. "I told you; I want to help you."

"Yeah." Scott nodded. "I got that part. But why?" He asked, staring suspiciously again.

Deucalion sighed in defeat. "I will help you on the condition that I may join your pack after we end this madness."

"What!?" Lydia snapped.

"Well, that's hilarious." Peter mumbled, smirking to himself.

"No fucking way!" Isaac growled.

"Scott, don't listen to him, man!" Aiden snarled.

"Yeah!" Ethan snarled. "He'll betray us in a fucking heartbeat!"

"Shut up!" Scott snarled loudly, silencing everything werewolf in the room that was protesting in that moment.

'That Alpha thing is still fucking awesome! Go, Scotty!' Stiles thought, smirking slightly herself.

"Scott," Derek finally spoke up, glancing calmly at the young Alpha. "We don't really have a lot of options here. We're practically sitting here, just waiting for something bad to happen. And Silver's not saying anything."

Deucalion smiled over at Scott. "Have you tried looking into her memories?" He asked. "It works on pretty much anyone... If you know how, that is." And for once, he wasn't being smug. Hell, he actually seemed pretty fucking genuine. And that still kind of pissed some of the group off, where it intrigued others;

Stiles in particular. She knew now, it wasn't Deucalion she had the bad feeling over. No, it was something much worse. She didn't know what. And right now, she really didn't know if ignorance was bliss. Well, maybe for a little while it was. Assuming that had that little while.

Scott looked like he was actually thinking that over before he glanced back to Derek. "It might work." He said. "We should try it."

Derek was about to protest when his gaze drifted over to Stiles, who was glancing warily at the ex-Alpha. "Fine." He sighed in defeat. "Whatever you want."

Scott arched a brow, clearly surprised. Though, he had a good idea of why the "sour wolf" was being so lenient lately. "Really?" He all, but squealed. How very Alphary.

"Yeah." Derek shot him a slight glare, knowing exactly what the taunting, little shit was doing. "Really."

"Just like that?" Scott asked, now smirking slightly as his gaze flickered briefly towards Stiles, who was now glaring at both of them.

Derek's glare darkened. "You're the Alpha, after all." He all, but grumbled.

And really, Stiles did kind of want to chuckle a little at that, because really, Derek looked like a little boy sulking right now and it was also kind of a-fucking-dorable...

...Once the little pack "meeting" was over, the group parted their ways for the rest of the day. Scott had his daily shift with Deaton, Isaac making his way to his own part-time job at a local supermarket, Lydia and Ethan dragging Aiden along on a shopping trip while Danny was visiting family in Hawaii for the weekend, and there was Cora, who did what she always did; disappeared without saying much at all, she was rather like her uncle there. And of course, Peter, who wanted to hang around with his "dear old" (his words) nephew, but instead was practically one step under being thrown out of the loft in response to his "polite request".

And then there was Stiles, obviously. And where was Stiles? Well, she was still perched on the table in the werewolf's loft, shooting him a slight glare. "So," She began, her voice calm, despite her hard expression. "Did you find out who that dickhead who broke into my house was?" She asked, arching a brow.

Derek leaned on the back of the couch as he stared back at her, looking as though he was trying to read her. He hadn't realised how good she was at masking her emotions, because, well, because Stiles was the kind of girl who always wore her heart on her sleeve and spoke her mind when she needed to. And it was just another thing he loved about the human. 'Wait -- what!? Lo --'

"Well?"

Derek quickly snapped out of his thoughts, his gaze lingering on her pretty moles on the side of her even prettier face for a brief moment. "Uh, yeah." He mumbled, slightly distracted still. But it wasn't his fault, damn it! "Peter knows him. His name's Charlie. Apparently he's just Silver's idiot, little brother."

Stiles nodded, feeling a little relieved now. At least she knew now. The guy was just trying to get his sister back. But still, he was a total dickhead. "Why didn't you tell me?" She asked quietly.

"I only found out yesterday." Derek explained, his voice soft. "And I didn't wanna ruin last night." He added, frowning slightly.

Stiles smiled slightly at that. She couldn't help it, okay? "Thank you." And okay, she couldn't help blushing slightly, too.

Derek looked a little surprised by that, but smiled slightly in return. And then again, it really wasn't his fault when he found his feet moving of their own accord, moving him closer and closer until he was standing right in front of her.

Stiles stared up him as he slowly edged closer until he was nestled quietly comfortably between her thighs. Her heart, of course, began to race as he leaned down, placing his lips over hers. And again, her hands moved automatically, linking behind his neck and pulling him down, closer.

Derek's hands flew to her sides, running lightly down and around to her peachey, little ass and giving it that little squeeze he loved to give it. And instantly, he was rewarded by a small moan against his lips, to which he grinned lightly against her own in return. And he was especially pleased when he moved his mouth to the crook of her neck instead and caused her legs to automatically wrap around his waist. And especially when she gripped his hips with her thighs in some sort of little revenge act, well, the werewolf really couldn't help, but let a low growl rumble slowly through his chest.

"God, I hate you." Stiles whispered, her eyes fluttered furiously as he began to nibble gently on her earlobe instead.

Derek grinned, his nose softly prodding at the spot just under her ear. "No, you don't." Well, he hoped, at least. 'God, I love you... Fuck.'


	48. Chapter 48

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Since when do you call me 'bro'?"

"So?"

Derek arched a brow over at his baby sister. Of course, he knew what she wanted, but he wasn't going to make it easy for the little brat. "What?" He asked, giving her a slightly confused look, just to annoy her all the more, obviously.

And it worked like a fricking charm when Cora shot him a less than impressed look in return. "Really? REALLY, Derek?" She scoffed loudly as she plopped down on the couch beside him. "Don't try to play dumb, bro, it doesn't suit you."

Derek arched both brows this time. "Since when do you call me 'bro'?" He asked, sounding slightly amused. 'She's been hanging around Stiles too long.'

"Since when do you try to avoid answering important questions?" Cora countered, arching her brows in return. "Oh, that's right, I forgot -- you do that ALL the time." She added with a smug, little smirk.

Derek glared at her briefly. "What'd you wanna know, Cora?" He asked, letting out a tired sigh.

"Oh, come on, don't be like that." Cora pouted. "I'm your sister. You can talk to me about... Stuff."

"You mean about my disastrous love life?" Derek asked, smirking slightly in amusement.

"Well, yeah." Cora simply smiled. "Besides, who else you gonna talk to? Uncle Peter?" And she couldn't even get the words out properly before laughing at them.

Derek shrugged. "I used to talk to him about everything..." He stated with a thoughtful, though, slightly saddened look. "Even after the fire, when I used to go visit him in hospital... Right up until he killed Laura."

"I think he got a little lost after mom died." Cora mumbled, feeling the aching lump already forming in the back of her throat.

Derek nodded. "I think we all did."

Cora shot her big brother a saddened, but somehow fond smile. "Derek, you were already broken before that... You know what ending an innocent life does to our souls."

Derek simply nodded again. Of course he knew. How could he ever forget the moment he held Paige in his arms before crushing her spine and ending her suffering forever? He never could. She was his first love. And apart from Stiles, she was the only person he had ever truly loved... To death.

"Anyway, enough about the old days." Cora chirped, trying to lighten the mood between them. "I wanna hear about this date." She smiled slyly.

Derek rolled his eyes, but couldn't help smiling to himself. "It was good."

Cora nodded excitedly, waiting for him to go on and when he didn't, she immediately glared at him. "Are you serious!? That's all you're gonna say!?"

"What'd you want me to say, brat?" Derek asked, letting out an exasperated sigh.

"Don't call me that!" Cora snapped, scowling at him -- and wow, Derek really didn't want to laugh, thinking that this must have been what Stiles saw whenever he glared at her. "Derek, don't be a wereass." She shot him a pointed, slightly threatening look.

Derek rolled his eyes. "God, fine. What'd you wanna know and I'll tell you."

Cora's excited grin immediately returned at that. "Did you kiss her?"

Again, Derek rolled his eyes, but this time, he really couldn't help smiling to himself.

Cora gasped, her eyes widening. "You did!"

"Why do girls always ask that first?" Derek asked, shooting her an expectant look. "Like where did I take her?"

...Stiles couldn't help smiling as she answered the redhead's question. "Jasmine's Palace."

"The cute, little Turkish place uptown?" Danny asked, looking somewhat impressed.

Stiles' smiled widened slightly. "Yeah. I used to go there with my mom. And apparently, he asked Scott what kinda food I like and Scotty-boy told him about it."

"Wow." Ethan looked rather amazed by the notion of the grumpiest werewolf he had ever met doing something like that. "That's actually kinda sweet."

Stiles chuckled at his expression. "I know, right?" She grinned. "And it gets even crazier --"

"Oh, God. He didn't propose -- did he?" Lydia asked, already shaking her head in dismay.

"What? No." Stiles shot her a withering look. "No. He said that he also used to go to Jasmine's Palace with his own mom and sisters."

"That IS actually kinda weird." Isaac piped up.

Stiles rolled her eyes, but couldn't help smiling still. "That's what I thought, dude."

"Oh, by the way, I might have asked Derek if he'd rather go to the Homecoming dance with you instead of me... I was kinda hoping to ask Cora. I know it's a long shot, but still." Isaac said, shooting her a sheepish smile.

"What!?" Stiles eyes widened at that. "What the hell, dude!? Derek's not gonna wanna come to a stupid high school dance. I'm not even sure that I wanna go anymore, either... I kinda forgot it was this Friday." She smiled sheepishly when the redhead glared at her.

"Hey, don't worry about it." Isaac said. "If they say no, we can still go together... If you want?"

Stiles sighed loudly. "Yeah. I guess."

"Ugh." Lydia scoffed. "Now we have to go shopping again."

Stiles arched a brow. "Oh, right. Like it's such a chore for you."

...Cora glared at her big brother. "I still hate you. He keeps staring at me when he thinks I don't notice. It's creepy."

Derek scoffed lightly. "You love it."

Cora's glare darkened. "It's never gonna happen. End of."

Again, Derek scoffed. "Yeah. That's what I kept trying to tell myself." He said, shooting her a pointed look. "It could be tomorrow or it could be ten years from now, but you will give in eventually... You won't be able to help yourself anymore."

Cora glanced curiously at him as he stared thoughtfully down at the coffee table. "Is that how it was for you?" She asked softly.

Derek barely nodded in response.

Cora frowned slightly, trying to read her brother's expression before arching a brow of surprise. "Derek," She waited until his eyes locked back on hers and listened closely to his heart before asking: "Do you love Stiles?" And instantly, there was a small flutter in his pulse, barely noticeable, but she noticed -- to which she then raised her brow higher, the corners of her lips twitching into a small smile.

Derek glared slightly, knowing exactly what she was doing. But what use would there be in lying, anyway? "I hate YOU." He stated calmly, shooting her a pointed look.

Cora grinned. "No, you don't. You love me... But you love Stiles more." She added that last part quickly, laughing when he glared at her once again.

"No. I hate you just as much." Derek grunted, instantly mentally cursing himself for his little slip-up.

Cora's grin widened into a sly one. "So, you DO love her, then?" She asked seriously, though, clearly teasing him.

Derek instantly glared at her again. "And now, brat," He chirped, slapping her lightly around the back of the head before rising from the couch. "I hate you even more."

Cora quickly managed to get in a small kick to the back of his leg, chuckling in amusement when he almost fell flat on his face.

Derek swirled around and glared down at her yet again. "Do you want me to put you under?" He challenged lightly.

Cora scoffed loudly, arching a brow. "Like you could even take me."

"Okay, that's it. That was your last chance." Derek chirped before reaching for her, grabbing her around the waist and hoisting her up over his shoulder.

"Derek!" Cora yelped, though, unable to help laughing loudly. All she knew right now was that she was glad to have her old brother back. And she knew who to thank for that...

"...Stiles!" Isaac growled, though, his iron-blue orbs were slightly widened with panic.

"Oh, suck it, werebitch. It's not my fault you're a total failure at this game." Stiles chimed casually as her thumbs worked overtime on her X-Box 360.

"It's Mortal Combat, man. Stiles is a total pro at M.C. She's made Scott actually cry with frustration before. It was actually really funny." Danny stated simply, as if that was that, which apparently it was.

"You know it, my beautiful prince of Hawaii!" Stiles chirped without even looking away from the screen.

Danny chuckled at that.

"Ugh. You guys are so boring." Lydia whined from her position on Stiles' bed, sprawled lazily over Ethan and Danny -- who were both simply cuddled up together, picking at a large bag of Skittles, while watching with amusement at the on-screen battle between the skilled human and the pathetic werewolf.

"Oh, my God! How the fuck are you even doing that!?" Isaac roared, clearly outraged.

"It's called 'Fatality', pup." Stiles grinned. "Recognise, yo!"

"I absolutely hate your stupid, fucking guts right now." Isaac mumbled with a pout as he tossed the controller over to Ethan -- who, of course, caught it with ease.

"Such a sore loser." Stiles teased, shaking her head in dismay just for emphasis.

"Do you want me to rip your throat out?" Isaac asked calmly, but seriously.

Stiles chuckled, clearly amused. "Dude, don't steal other people's lines. Make your own. Like; 'Want me to rip your face off?'"

Isaac simply glared at her. "I'll get you one day. You HAVE to go down eventually."

Stiles scoffed loudly. "As if, dude. I totally fucking rock the socks off of everyone who ever lived ever, while YOU make the little, baby Jesus cry because of how bad of a loser you are."

"Oh, snap!" Ethan chimed, he and Danny then chuckling to themselves.

Isaac glared briefly at the couple. "You want a piece?"

Ethan shot him a withering look. "Whatever, man. You couldn't even defeat a little girl."

Stiles gasped. "Oh, you did NOT! Bright it, werebitch!"


	49. Chapter 49

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Well, good luck with your little Alice in Wonderland tea party or whatever the hell it is happening over at your place."

"You sure you're okay, dude?" Scott asked, sounding slightly concerned. "You sound like your in pain, your voice is a little strained."

Stiles absolutely fucking HATED period pains. But then again, what female didn't? She sighed loudly as she shut her bedroom door behind her. Again, she was alone in the house tonight, while her father worked another night shift. She really did worry about the old man sometimes. He worked himself too damn hard and did very little for his health, like eat well, for instance. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just... Woman stuff." She mumbled into her iPhone as she slumped down onto her bed.

"Oh... Okay... Gross." Scott mumbled.

Stiles huffed out a little laugh at that. "Yeah. Thanks for your sympathy, bro."

"Sorry. I can come over, if you need me to?" Scott asked.

"No. It's okay. I'll be okay. I'm used to it. But thanks." Stiles replied gratefully. "What'd you call for, anyway? What's up? You still with Deucalion?"

"Yeah. He's having tea in the kitchen right now with my mom and Peter... It's a little weird." Scott stated, actually sounding rather disturbed.

Stiles chuckled at that. "Yeah. I can only imagine. But I totally think you should take a photo of them and send it to me... Please?" She added that last part sweetly. Though, she already knew his answer.

Scott laughed at that. "You got it." He chirped. "Anyway, I was calling 'cause I kinda had a weird feeling that you were feeling a little... Off." He explained.

Stiles smiled fondly to herself. "Awh, dude." She gushed, only half teasing him. "Your Alpha senses tell you one of your pack babies are feeling like shit? Like I am, right now? I'm touched. Really, I am."

Scott chuckled. "Shut up, douchebag. But yeah. I guess, anyway... Again; it's a little weird."

Stiles rolled her eyes, though, she was still smiling in amusement. "Well, good luck with your little Alice in Wonderland tea party thing or whatever the hell it is happening over at your place." She chuckled lightly, just trying to imagine. "But I am out, my brotha. I'm gonna hit the hay, 'cause I feel like a pillowcase of shit right now."

Scott laughed at that. "That's a new one. I like it."

Stiles chuckled. "Night, dude. Oh, and don't forget to send me the photo!" She chimed excitedly.

"Yeah, yeah. I'll send it to you later. I promise." Scott vowed, though, she could practically hear him grinning. "Night, bro."

"Night, Scotty." Stiles chirped before quickly hanging up just as she felt another overwhelming wave of pain ripple painfully slow through her lower belly. She let out a loud, pained grown, tossing her phone onto the bed beside her before doubling over and applying as much pressure as she could, hoping to ease the pain. "God, fuck!" She hissed, gritting her teeth tightly and wincing as another wave washed over her.

"Stiles!?"

Stiles' eyes snapped open and glanced towards the doorway. "Derek?" She frowned slightly in confusion before -- 'Oh, yeah... The pack connection thing... Huh...'

"What's wrong?" Derek asked as he shuffled quickly over to her.

"It's nothing. I'm fine." Stiles managed to mumble out quickly. 'God, could this be any more em-fucking-barrassing!?'

Derek sat down on the bed beside her and reached forward slightly, then pausing as he noticed the slight change in her scent. 'Blood?' He frowned slightly in confusion as his eyes raked over every inch of her body, looking for any open wounds, but found nothing at all. His nose twitched slightly, gaining a slightly bigger whiff. 'Oh...' He winced slightly as the realisation finally hit him.

"Ugh. Stop sniffing me." Stiles snapped, glaring at him to cover up her heavy blushing. 'Great. It just got even more em-fucking-barrassing. I seriously hate my life right now!' And much to Stiles' surprise, the werewolf merely rolled his eyes at her. In fact, he didn't seem all that bothered or embarrassed at all. And as much as that annoyed her, it also kind of comforted her. "Ugh!" She groaned, feeling yet another wave of pain rip through her, aching her to the bones now. Slowly, she crawled the rest of the way up her bed and slowly kicked back the covers before making herself as comfortable as fricking possible underneath them. "Oh, God, just kill me. I beg of you." She grumbled as she curled up as tightly as possible, hugging her knees up to her chest. 'Kill me for the pain as well as the fricking embarrassment!'

Derek slid his leather jacket off, leaving it at the end of the bed before slowly shuffling up beside her. "Stiles," He reached forward, a hand gripping her knees and gently pulling them away from her chest.

"Wait -- what're you doing?" Stiles mumbled as he shuffled a little closer. And just to add to the embarrassment, she knew he could hear her pulse racing like a little bitch right now.

"Helping you." Derek stated simply. "C'mere." He mumbled, gently wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her smaller frame closely beside his warmth.

Stiles knew what he meant by that, and as much as she wanted to say 'no', the pain was almost un-fucking-bearable by now. And while she knew what to expect, she hadn't expected him to slip a warm hand under her tank top and rest it gently over her lower belly.

"Relax." Derek breathed, trying to take his own advice when he heard her gasp quietly. "Touch between your pack mates helps, too... And especially between... True mates." He mumbled quietly as he watched the tiny, black lines run slowly up his arm. If he did this slow enough, he do it longer and take away most of her pain, hopefully.

"And your hand is warm." Stiles mumbled, feeling slightly sleeping now. "Warmth helps, too."

Derek smiled slightly to himself. "Does it feel any better yet?" He asked, his smile only widening as she moved a little closer, almost completely curled around him now. He lifted his other arm, wrapping it lightly around the back of her shoulders.

"Yeah." Stiles nodded. "Thank you..."

...Melissa glanced up at her son as soon as he re-entered their kitchen. "Stiles okay, honey?" She asked, looking concerned.

Scott smiled reassuringly and nodded. He felt a little better, too. He could no longer feel his best friend's pain. And that really was a good thing. It really was one of the most uncomfortably tight feelings in his chest ever. "Yeah. She's just feeling a little tired." He explained, not wanting to embarrass his best friend; his bro.

Melissa nodded and smiled, looking relieved to hear that.

"That time of the month?" Peter asked calmly.

Scott glared over at him.

Peter chuckled. "Oh, come on. I could smell it on her last night. Don't tell me YOU didn't. You know her better than anyone, after all." He teased.

"Shut up, idiot!" Scott snapped, shuffling right over to the older werewolf and slapping around the back of the head.

"Ow! Hey! That's assault!" Peter warned, pointing a finger at the young Alpha. "Y'know, just because you're an almighty True Alpha now, that doesn't mean you get to abuse us Betas."

Scott merely rolled his eyes as he plopped down at the breakfast table in between his mother and Deucalion.

"Yeah, well, after everything you put him and his friends through, let alone your own family -- I THINK he can make an exception with YOU." Melissa chimed in, shooting the werewolf a pointed and rather smug look.

Peter grinned at that. "Touché." He quipped, bowing his head to her.

Scott glared at the werewolf again, shooting him a "don't even THINK of going there with my mother or I'll tear your head off!" look. Though, thankfully, his mother simply rolled her eyes, looking deeply unimpressed.

"Anyway," Peter smirked to himself. "I bet my darling, little nephew is comforting Miss Stilinski as we speak."

Again, Scott rolled his eyes, but he knew that the "creeperwolf" was probably right. Maybe that's why he couldn't feel her pain at all anymore. Maybe... 'Ugh. Probably.' He was happy for his best friend, he really was, but it still felt a little weird to him.

"Wait -- what?" Melissa stared blankly between her son and Peter. "Stiles and Derek? Derek Hale?" She looked completely lost now and a little angry as she glared at her son. "Why am I always the last one to know anything, boy!?" She barked sternly.

Scott shot her a sheepish look as he bowed his head. "Sorry, mom... I didn't think you'd wanna know all the details of the supernatural."

"Who's talking about supernatural!?" Melissa snapped. "My little Stiles is finally dating!" She cried, smiling widely now. "And besides, it was a little obvious. I think those two hated each other a LITTLE too much."

And Scott had to chuckle at that.


	50. Chapter 50

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You REALLY shouldn't say things like THAT..."

Stiles hadn't realised she had fallen asleep until she had woken up -- and who knows how long later that was? She certainly didn't. Although, not that she cared, really. And for a moment, she had forgotten just where that incredible warmth was coming from. She kept her eyes closed for the moment, just enjoying the comfortable feeling and it seemed that the werewolf was still awake. She could practically feel his usually intense orbs on her. "Stop staring. S'creepy." She mumbled quietly, pressing herself closer into his side.

Derek couldn't help smiling at that. "You love it." He muttered back -- mentally laughing as he remembered telling Cora the same thing when she had complained about Isaac staring at her all the damn time.

"Is that right, sourwolf?" Stiles managed to quip. Her eyes were still closed, however, as she fought the urge to smile.

"Yeah... And stop calling me that." Derek muttered, protesting by pressing his nose into it's favourite spot; the spot right under her ear, where her scent was the strongest. "Your heart beats a little faster, everytime I even look at you, and I can always hear it... It's VERY distracting." He smiled before pressing a couple of light kisses to the side of her throat. 'Yeah. Stop calling me that, because it's exactly not the name I wanna hear you screaming when I -- oh, God, stop! Ugh! She's not even 18 yet! ...Yet... Ugh! Keep it in your pants, Hale! You are better than this! ...Ugh. No, I'm not. I'm a horrible person, who's going to Hell... Seriously, if there even is a Hell, I'm going there after I die.'

Stiles scoffed lightly before finally cracking her eyes open, though, just barely. She mentally cursed herself when his point was only proven when her heart racing again as she realised how close his face actually was to hers.

Derek smiled smugly, but said nothing about it, thankfully for her. "Feeling better now, beautiful?" He asked lightly, thought, eyeing her with a little concern.

Stiles ignored the obvious blush on her cheeks as she answered. "Yeah... Thanks." She mumbled.

Derek smiled again before pressing a quick, but sweet kiss to her lips. "Stop thanking me. It's not a chore for me to look out for you."

Stiles nodded and grinned to cover up her nerves. "Yeah, well, I've saved your furry ass enough times. So, I guess that DO kinda you owe me. Lots of ones, actually."

Derek rolled his eyes at that, but couldn't help smirking in amusement. "Well, how about that second date -- this weekend?" He asked. And he already knew exactly what that second date was going to be. He just hoped that she enjoyed herself, because as far as he was concerned, she deserved to have a good time and be a normal teenager.

Stiles smiled. "Um, yeah, okay." She nodded, biting lightly at her bottom lip. "What exactly did you have in mind, big guy?" She chirped, then arching a brow when he simply shot her a small, knowing smirk. "It's another surprise -- isn't it?"

"Yep." Derek mumbled before slowly leaning forward and pressing his lips to hers again...

...Scott scowled as he plopped down on his living room couch. "I don't understand. It should have worked."

Peter sighed as he plopped lazily down beside the young Alpha. "It should have, yes." He nodded in agreement.

"There may be one reason as to why it didn't." Deucalion piped up as he stood before the younger werewolves. "If Silver doesn't remember what we're looking for, you won't be able to find it in her mind."

Peter nodded. "Of course. Why the hell didn't I think of that?" He scowled.

Deucalion smirked. "Because you're an idiot." He stated calmly, causing Scott to smirk in amusement to himself as well.

Peter shot the oldest werewolf a brief glare.

"What'd you mean, anyway?" Scott asked.

"Her Alpha could have easily removed any memories he wished to keep hidden from any other packs." Deucalion explained.

"Okay, well, it's onto Plan B, then." Scott stated, staring pointedly. "You're gonna tell me everything you know about Silver, her Alpha, and the asshole that broke into my best friend's apartment right now." He stated sternly, clearly not asking. "Y'know, if you ever wanna join my pack, that is..." He added casually, wearing a bittersweet smile.

Deucalion nodded. "Very well. But I'm going warn you beforehand -- it's, uh, it's not a very happy story. And it involves your friend; Miss Stilinski."

Scott eyed him carefully, noticing the other werewolf's uneasiness. "Okay, fine. I've been warned." He nodded. "Go on." He urged, arching an intrigued brow.

Deucalion nodded again. "I assume you already know of your Miss Stilinski's mother?"

Scott simply nodded in response.

"Well, I also knew Claudia Stilinski." Deucalion said.

Scott's eyes widened slightly at that little revelation. Though, he kept his mouth shut, for now. He then shot Peter a brief glare, knowing that he must have know, too. He also wondered if Derek had told Stiles. Or if Derek even knew for himself.

Peter simply shrugged, smiling that stupid, smug shit smile he usual smiled when he knew he was in trouble. Of course, he knew pieces of the story -- having been creeping around when he thought his big sister; Talia hadn't noticed, but of course, she had. And as always, she hadn't been angry with him, just disappointed. Which was so much worse. He had loved his sister more than anything, but he just couldn't seem to help himself. It was just his nature, it seemed.

"Well, there were five packs, all who were allies; friends. And obviously, five Alphas: Talia, Ennis, Kali, Cable and myself." Deucalion explained as both other wolves listened intently. "This all happened a few years before the Argents came along. Talia and Cable's pack both lived on either sides of Beacon Hills, while the rest of our packs were on bordering towns. At the time, Silver was barely out of twenties when Cable had found her one night in the forest, wounded severely and looking for the Hale pack Alpha. Everyone knew how powerful Talia was, even for an Alpha. She was a little like you, Scott; a rarity; a True and deserving Alpha." He smiled fondly at the younger werewolf.

"An I'M the one who made him." Peter chimed in proudly. "See? Who's the idiot now?"

Scott simply glared back at the older werewolf, looking deeply unimpressed.

Deucalion smirked. "Still you. You may have bitten him; made him a werewolf, but he made himself; became a True Alpha himself." He stated pointedly.

Peter glared this time. "Okay, I REALLY don't like this guy." He grumbled with a huff before throwing himself back into the couch.

Scott merely rolled his eyes, though, he was unable to help smirking a little. 'Well, at least if I DO decide to let Deucalion join the pack, I know Peter will absolutely hate it... But then again, so might the others... Damn.' He frowned slightly at that thought.

"Anyway," Deucalion went on with his story. "Talia, of course, took Silver in, saving her life. Talia even offered to allow her to join the Hale pack, but Cable also wanted her to join his pack. And it seemed that Silver had taken a shine to the older man, what with never knowing her own father, so of course, he took her in instead."

"Yeah," Peter nodded. "Then I met the crazy bitch a couple of years later when Cable's pack came to visit."

"Yes," Deucalion nodded. "She was very fond of you. I STILL can't understand why."

Scott scoffed loudly in amusement at that.

Deucalion smirked before continuing again. "Well, to get to the important part -- Claudia was Cable's emissary and they were always very close, as most emissary and Alpha relationships are. But over the years, it seemed that Cable actually fell in love with her, and of course, Claudia's heart truly belonged to John. Cable knew that, but he wasn't the type of man to let things slide. He began to grow possessive over her. Even after she'd had her daughter, he insisted that she leave John to be with him."

Peter arched a brow. "Well, I did not know that little detail."

Scott looked somewhere between annoyed and utterly mind-fucked right now. "What -- how -- does John know about any of this?" He finally breathed, managing to form words, any fricking words.

Deucalion shook his head. "No. Claudia was always very good at keeping her double life separate. I only found out a few years after Talia died."

"Who told you?" Scott demanded with a scowl.

Deucalion looked hesitant, but let out a little sigh of defeat before answering anyway. "Derek."

Scott's eyes narrowed considerably. "So he DOES know. What the fuck!? Stiles is gonna fucking kill him! I'M gonna fucking kill him!" He yelped, finally voicing his opinions.

"No, Scott." Deucalion shook his head. "Derek doesn't remember any of it. He doesn't even remember telling me anymore... I... I took the memory from him... By force. But to spare him, because I thought Cable was dead. I killed him myself. I swear it. I slit his throat when he tried to kill Talia for keeping him from killing John. I swear on my life."

Scott stared at him for a good few seconds, just taking in all of this mind-fucking information. He didn't even know where the hell to begin. "And now what!? Cable couldn't have Claudia, so now?" He growled. "He's coming back for Stiles instead?"

Again, Deucalion looked extremely uncomfortable, but nodded anyway. "Yes, I think so."

"Well, fuck THAT!" Scott roared, instantly rising from the couch. "There is no fucking way that this piece of shit is taking ANY of my pack!" He yelled, his voice hoarse as his eyes burned bright red...

...Stiles smiled to herself his warm lips trailed lightly down her neck. "Y'know what?" She mumbled, her hands threaded through his short, black tufts.

"What?" Derek mumbled back, the tip of his nose gently prodding at her earlobe.

Stiles smiled widened slightly. "I think I like waking up to a Derek Hale in my bed." She muttered sweetly, though, while trying to ignore her stupid blushing again.

Derek growled lightly, the sound vibrating in her throat as well as his as his hands gripped either side of her waist, pulling her as close as possible. And he swore that this time, even she probably felt his dick twitch when she let out a little, but amused-sounding giggle. "You REALLY shouldn't say things like THAT... Especially when we're in such a compromising position." He grumbled into her shoulder as he rested his forehead there.

Stiles merely grinned. "Suck it up, sourwolf." And again with the growling. She started to suspect that he may actually love that little nickname. Maybe nearly as much as she loved his God damn hott growling...

Ugh.


	51. Chapter 51

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I'm dating Derek."

For the first time in almost a month now, Stiles' father's cruiser was already parked up outside their house when she pulled up after school on Monday. Stiles frowned curiously -- her father having told her he was working late again tonight. She quickly hopped out of her Jeep and when she shuffled into the house, she found her father slumped across the couch, sleeping and still dressed in his Sheriff's uniform. She shook her head and smiled to herself and she shuffled over to him. "Dad," She called out to him softly as she sat, perched on the coffee table in front. "Dad, wake up." She called out again, her voice a little louder as she reached forward and gently shook his shoulder.

"I'm up!" John chimed out before his eyes then snapped open. "Stiles," His gaze landed on hers when he remembered just where he was. "Hey, kiddo. You okay?" He asked as he slowly pulled himself up into a sitting position.

Stiles chuckled lightly. "I was gonna ask YOU that." She stated with a pointed look. "Why didn't you just go to bed instead of face-planting the couch? You look wiped."

John nodded. "Ah, I am. But I was waiting for you to get home first."

Stiles arched a brow of interest at that. "Oh?"

"Yeah." John said, smiling slightly. "I thought you might wanna order a pizza or something, with your old man. It's been too long since I've spent some time with my baby girl."

Stiles grinned at that. "Yeah. Sounds great... Except for the ordering a pizza part. I mean, I love pizza as much as any other sane person, but how about I cook for us instead?"

John sighed in defeat, but couldn't help nodding and also smiling slightly. "It should be me looking after you. I don't deserve you, Gammy."

Stiles inhaled sharply at that little nickname; one that he hadn't used since her mother had died. And if it had been anyone else using that nickname, she surely would have punch the shit out of them. But when her father said it, she felt like the little girl she had been when she had cried over the loss of her mother. It made her both sad and happy to hear him say it after all these years...

...After forcing her father to go take a hot shower and to change his clothes, the two of them finally sat down opposite one another at their small breakfast table in the kitchen. Stiles hadn't gone to much fuss with the cooking, she had simply whipped up some pasta and spaghetti sauce to go with it; tasty and easy.

"So," John began, cursing himself when he knew he sounded a little too casual. He knew his daughter was a smart person and that she could read people easily; read him easily. And he figured that was what she was doing right now as she arched an expectant brow back at him. "I heard through the grapevine that you're dating now."

Stiles pulse raced slightly, panic setting in her mind. How had she forgotten about her father knowing? Ugh, easy. Derek Hale's mouth on her -- that's how! Ugh, not that she was even complaining. God, she really would never. Not unless he actually made good on his promise and finally ripped her throat out, with his teeth, of course. And ugh, now she was imagining the werewolf's canines scraping over her neck and Jesus Christ, that was distracting as Hell. "Uh... Yeah, I am." Huh. Smooth. REAL smooth.

John arched a brow this time. Though, thankfully, he didn't look all that angry -- like she would have thought. "That's it? That's all you're gonna say?" He asked, sounding slightly surprised as he stabbed at his pasta before shoving it into his mouth -- and Stiles could never say that she didn't know where she had gotten her bad eating habits from, nor her "insatiable" table manners.

"Uh, well..." Well, what? Stiles really didn't fricking know. She didn't know what to think right now, let alone say. What could she even say? She didn't even know if her father even liked Derek? Sure, they both were civil and pleasant to one another -- well, after the whole Derek Hale being wanted for murder thing cleared up, anyway -- but how the heck was she supposed to tell her dad she was dating Derek Hale? "Um, I'm dating Derek." Huh. Just like that, apparently.

John froze mid-chew, his eyes flying back to hers and his brows lifting as he then slowly swallowed the rest of his mouthful. "Derek." He repeated, his voice calm, a little too calm. "Derek Hale?" He asked, arching a brow slightly.

"Um... Yeah? ...I mean, at least, I THINK we're dating... We've only been out on one date... Last night, in fact..." Stiles winced slightly, waiting for him to begin his shouting and his lecturing. But it simply never came to that.

John frowned, looking a little troubled, to say the very least. But at least he didn't look angry or upset. "Huh... Well, uh... How was it?" He asked, seeming rather interested, much to his daughter's surprise.

However, Stiles was still slightly suspicious. She knew she still wasn't completely out of an interrogation... Again. "Um, it was, I mean, I don't know what kinda details you want, but... It was really nice and I had a really good time."

John nodded, a thoughtful expression planted on his tired face. "Did you two, uh... Y'know?" He asked, looking very awkward, to say the very least.

Stiles eyes widened. "What!? Oh, no! No. Dad. God. I am NOT talking about sex with you! Ever!"

"What!?" John barked. "No, Stiles. Gross, kiddo... I didn't ask for the details. I was just asking if he was a gentleman or not." He stated, shooting her a slight glare.

"Oh..." Stiles blushed slightly. "Right... Well, then, yes. He totally was." She added with a small smile.

John nodded and really, he couldn't help smiling a little, too. "Well," He sighed, placing his fork back onto his empty place. "It's about damn time you two stopped dancing around each other."

"What!?" Stiles all, but spluttered, mid-chew, too. How very ladylike of her, indeed.

John huffed out a light chuckle. "I know you're a little oblivious sometimes, but I see how Derek looks at you..." He rolled his eyes, though, still smiling lightly. "Even when he thinks I don't notice." He grumbled that last part with a slight glare.

Stiles had to chuckle at that.

"I can't say that I'm happy about you dating a werewolf... Or dating at all... Ever... Or at least, until I'm dead, anyway... But Scotty's a werewolf, too. And I've seen Derek risk his life for you both more times than I could probably count by now... So, at least I know that he'll keep you safe when I'm not around to." John said, and really, he did mean that. He was just sad to see his baby girl grow up and eventually leave him. Just like Claudia.

Stiles smiled, her eyes brimming with unshed tears now. "Dad..." She sighed quietly in defeat.

John frowned, looking slightly concerned now. "Hey, hey, come on, there's no need for all of that." He whispered softly, reaching across the table and gently grasping her hand in his. "I know I'm not good with all this sentimental crap." He joked, trying to lighten the mood.

Stiles chuckled weakly and shook her head. "No. No, it's not that." She said. "I... Thank you... Seriously."

John smiled brightly. "Anytime, kiddo." He chirped. "Now, what's wrong? Really?" He asked, shooting her a knowing look.

Stiles gulped silently. "I... I have to tell you something... And... It's about mom..."

...Derek didn't know who to be more pissed off at right now, so instead, he simply settled for glaring at both the werewolves standing in his loft. "Give me one good reason why the hell I shouldn't rip your throat out right now." He ground out, his angry glare now boring fully on the eldest werewolf.

"Derek," Scott cut in, trying to calm the situation before it got out of hand. Which he knew it was probably going to.

"Shut up, Scott." Derek snapped without even looking at him.

Scott glared at him before stepping in front of him, blocking his view from the other werewolf.

Derek instantly moved his glare back to young Alpha. "Move." He muttered, his voice incredibly low now.

"Derek," Deucalion piped up. "I did it to save you the burden of knowing. It didn't matter." He explained somewhat desperately.

"No. You did it so that I'd join your stupid Alpha pack! You were trying to cut all my human ties and string up loose ends for yourself!" Derek roared, shoving the young Alpha out of the way and stalking right up to the other Beta. "And it does matter! It matters NOW!"

Scott huffed, glaring after him. He knew Derek was a stubborn asshole, so he decided to just stay on the sidelines... For now, anyway... Y'know, unless Derek decided he didn't want to talk anymore. As much as it pained Scott to admit, he still needed Deucalion... For now, anyway.

"What else did you take!? Huh!?" Derek growled, glaring daggers. "What else don't I remember!?"

"Nothing. I swear it." Deucalion vowed, holding up both his hands in surrender.

Derek huffed out angrily, disappointed that the other wolf was telling the truth, because he really wanted to hit someone right now. "Put then back. Now." He demanded rather than asked. "Every single thing you took, everything about Stiles, I want back, right now. And if I even think that you're holding back, Scott won't even have time to think about killing you."

Scott shot Deucalion a confirmed nod, also glaring slightly now...

...Charlie pouted childishly, because, well, it simply wasn't fair, he thought. "Come on, papi!" He whined, like the little pup' he once was, because he knew it annoyed the shit out of his father; his Alpha. "Just lemme go get Silver and then we can kill Derek and the rest of 'em and be done with it."

Cable arched a brow at his pup. "Oh?" He scoffed lightly. "YOU are telling ME what to do, now -- are you?"

Charlie shrank slightly back from the stern gaze of his Alpha. "No." He mumbled. "I just want my sister back."

Cable sighed and nodded. "As do I."

"I swear, if they've hurt her..." Charlie's sentence trailed off into an angry snarl at the mere thought.

Again, Cable nodded, resting a gentle hand on his son's shoulder. "As soon as I have little Gamora and we have Silver, you can do whatever you like to Derek and his pack." He grinned wickedly. "I have no qualms, whatsoever..."

...Derek gasped, panting heavily as he toppled out of the chair and onto his hands and knees. And then, there two pairs of hands on him, grabbing him under his shoulders and pulling him back up into the chair.

Scott stood in front of him, eyeing with concern. "Derek, you okay?"

Derek simply nodded in response as he quickly caught onto his breath.

"Well? Did it work?" Scott asked.

"Oh, it worked." Deucalion nodded, glancing warily at the heaving werewolf. "Has it all come back yet?"

Again, Derek nodded. "John," He breathed, his gaze flying to young Alpha's. "He'll go after John as well as Stiles."

Scott paled slightly. "Okay. That's it." He snapped. "You." He glared at the eldest werewolf. "You brought down this Cable guy once before and now you're help us do it again and this time, he's going to stay the fuck dead!"

Derek hauled himself up onto his feet, already making his way towards the elevator. "Call the others and get them here. We're done waiting."

"Wait! Where the hell are you going!?" Scott barked, his eyes widened slightly.

"I'm gonna get to Stiles and her father before that asshole does." Derek grunted as he yanked the metal partition across before pressing the elevator button...

...Stiles had enjoyed her time with her father tonight, mainly because it was a rarity for them, but she always loved to spend time with her old man. He was literally the center of her universe and vice versa.

After dinner, the two of them migrated into the living room couch and sat back to watch the tube. And that was until the tired Sheriff had dozed off halfway through the seventh re-run of American Dad, by which point, Stiles had shaken him awake again and this time, ordered him to go to his bed for some real sleep -- because Stiles knew that whenever he stayed at the station, he'd either fall asleep at his desk or find one of the uncomfortable leather couches to nap on instead. And come on now, the man wasn't as young as he used to be, so she figured that it was her turn to look after him. Especially after he had raised her single-handedly.

So, up the exhausted Sheriff went, grumbling something incoherent as he stumbled lightly up the stairs, bidding her a sleepy 'goodnight' along the way. And as Stiles moved towards the kitchen to clear up finally, there was a sudden sharp couple of knocks at the front door. She froze in her place, the hallway between the living room and the kitchen. And then again, there was another couple of knocks, louder, this time, almost desperate and she jumped at that. And then again, she jumped when she felt her phone vibrating in her back pocket. Quickly, she yanked it out, seeing a new text message:

From: Sourwolf --  
'It's just me.  
Open up, Bambi.  
It's important...'

Stiles let out a breath she hadn't even realised she was holding when she realised that she was in no immediate danger... Well, from being murdered, anyway. 'No smiley face this time.' She frowned slightly at that. 'Ugh. Really, Stiles?' She rolled her eyes at herself as she shoved her phone back into her pocket and shuffled quickly down the hallway. And of course, when she opened the door, Derek was standing in front of her, looking ridiculously pretty (as usual) and all leather jacket and serious eyebrows. And wait -- why did he have serious eyebrows?

"You're okay." Derek breathed deeply, a small, but relieved smile playing on his lips.

Stiles frowned deeply now. "Uh... Yeah. Why? What's going on?"

Derek sniffed the air lightly. "Your dad?"

Stiles frowned deepened a little further still. "Yeah, he's in, too. He's asleep." She explained. "Derek, what's going on?" She repeated. "You look... Um, scared." She mumbled, looking slightly afraid herself. "I don't think I like it when you look like that... It's scares me." Oh, please, why couldn't she just shut the hell up sometimes? Just sometimes! Was that too much to ask? Ugh. Apparently.

"I'll explain everything when you and your dad are safe." Derek told her. "So, go wake him up."

"What? No." Stiles scowled. "Derek --"

"Stiles," Derek whined a little. He actually fucking whined. What the hell? "PLEASE, don't be difficult right now. Just go wake your dad up and I'll explain everything when we get back to the loft. I promise."

Stiles narrowed her eyes. "This is about that asshole that trashed my room -- isn't it?" She growled slightly in annoyance when he didn't answer her. "Derek!"

Derek flinched slightly -- while totally NOT being just a little bit turned on by her little growl (because he totally WAS... Not.) And now was SO not the time. "Kind of." He mumbled. Because really, he didn't know how the hell he was supposed to tell her... Without her totally freaking the fuck out, anyway.

Stiles glared at him. "'Kind of'?" She asked, clearly unimpressed with his answer.

Derek sighed loudly in defeat. "God, you're so fucking stubborn sometimes." He muttered to himself, though, he wasn't exactly trying to cover it up.

Stiles scoffed loudly. "Yeah. I don't know who I must've learned THAT trait from." She stated sarcastically, shooting him a pointed look.

And even if he wanted to be annoyed with her, like he knew she was with him right now, Derek only found himself smiling. Her cheeks were puffed out and slightly flushed, her delicious, whiskey orbs glaring daggers at him, while her arms were folded defiantly across her chest. And again, right now, Derek really was proud of himself -- because again, he REALLY wanted to just slam her against the wall of her hallway, slide his hands up her legs, give her ass a little squeeze and then just f --

"Why the hell are you smiling?" Stiles barked, only growing more flustered as his smile slowly widened. And oh, good God, she knew that look; that intense, zoned-in look; the look he usually wore right before he -- oh, ohhh -- "Oh, no! No, you don't! Don't even think about kissing me just to get me to shut u --" And damn, she really did think that would work. Except, not really, because, well, stubborn ass werewolf here.

Derek moved his lips over hers a little more, deepened their kiss, but only a little before reluctantly pulling away. "You were saying?" He quipped with a small, teasing smirk.

Stiles' eyes narrowed up at him again. "Again; I hate you." She grumbled miserably, trying to pretend that he couldn't hear her pulse probably almost as loudly as she could hear it ringing and racking through her fucking ears. Ugh.

Derek's smirk widened slightly, his lips dragging lightly over her own as he mumbled a quiet: "And again; no, you don't." before leaning in for another kiss.


	52. Chapter 52

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Relax, big guy. You're still ma Der-Bear."

"Okay..." Was all John could really muster up, because, well, what the heck was he supposed to say? He didn't even know if he had properly processed everything he had just been told yet. "Hmm." He frowned slightly, looking a little trouble, because, of course he was. He finally glanced up from his shoes, glancing between his daughter and her best friend. "I think I liked it better when I was on the need-to-know basis." And while it was a little joke to lighten the mood, he also kind of meant that.

Stiles scoffed quietly to herself. "Yeah." She nodded in agreement with her father. "You and me, both."

John sighed loudly. "Did... Did your mother --"

"Dad, mom loved you. You were her true love and you always will be." Stiles cut in, knowing exactly what kind of thoughts were running through her old man's mind.

"Yes," Deucalion interjected. "Claudia may have kept things from you, but I can assure you; you knew the real her. She never did stop talking about you." He added that last part with a small, but encouraging smile.

Stiles shot the werewolf a small, but grateful smile. But in no way had she forgiven the asshole for all the shit he put her friends through; for all he put Scott and Derek through, in particular. Like she ever would forgive him, anyway.

John nodded. "And what about this Cable guy? He's still bitter about losing Sarah to me, so what -- he thinks he's coming back to kill me for it?" He scoffed at that. "I'd like to see him try." He muttered bitterly.

Derek smiled at that -- at least now he knew why Stiles was so brave and determined.

"Uh, yeah. Pretty much." Scott confirmed with a weary nod. "But you're totally safe with us."

Again, John scoffed. "Yeah. Thanks, Scott. I appreciate it, but if he thinks his getting his hands on Stiles, I'll kill him myself."

"Not if I get my hands on him first." Derek mumbled under his breath before he could really control himself. He tensed slightly when the others stared at him, some arching their brows and some simply just smirking, to which he responded to all of them with his usual glare.

Stiles' lips twitched lightly into a small smile. "Okay," She chirped, moving the conversation along for both hers and Derek's sakes. "I'm hearing a lot of negativity here." She motioned to the group with her hand. "So instead, how about we figure out how we're gonna deal with this? Deucalion, dude," She turned her attention to the eldest wolf. "You know Cable personally. How many of his pack are we dealing with here exactly?"

"His pack had abandoned him long before I ever ended his life. Silver and Charlie were always very close to him, they'd do anything for him, so they followed him instead of leaving with their pack." Deucalion explained. "But Cable isn't the sort of man to ask others for help, because as well as being too proud, he likes to do all the dirty work himself. So, I'm a little surprised that the other two are still with him, to be honest."

"Well, do you think you could still track his scent?" Stiles asked.

Deucalion shrugged lightly. "I think so, yes."

"And what about me -- could you track my scent, too?" Stiles asked.

Deucalion nodded. "Yes."

Derek grit his teeth slightly, fully aware of his so-called uncle smirking to himself as he watched his nephew in amusement.

Still oblivious, Stiles nodded in response before turning to her best friend; her brother; her Alpha. "I kinda think I have a plan."

Scott arched a brow, nodding for her to go on as the others all now listened with intrigue as well.

"Okay," Stiles began. "The asshole; Charlie knows my scent now, too. Which means that the dickhead; Cable will be able to track me down. I gotta figure he knew I'd warn my dad and we'd leave, so he probably knows exactly where we are."

Derek frowned -- of course he had thought of that, he just didn't want to tell her and worry the hell out of her. Although, it seemed that he kept giving Stiles less credit than she deserved, because, fuck, she was like a supernatural fountain of knowledge sometimes. Not to mention highly fricking observant. Which he really didn't know how that was even possible when she was always thinking and feeling a million miles a minute.

"So, I was thinking... Maybe I could be the bait and --"

"No fucking way!" Scott cut her off immediately.

Derek snapped out of his thoughts at that and shot his mate a slight glare, a sort of "what he said" look.

Stiles merely rolled her eyes at the both of them.

"Don't even think about it, kid." John piped up sternly.

"Ugh!" Stiles pouted. "Just hear me out!"

"No." Scott chirped back.

"Not happening." John huffed.

"What they said." Derek added.

"Yeah, I gotta say; I'm not liking this plan, either." Isaac said.

"Oh, come on, hear her out, at least." Cora said, pouting mainly over at her big brother -- who now shifted his glare onto her.

"Yeah. You wolves worried that the human will outsmart you? ...Again." Lydia smirked smugly when Scott, Derek, Isaac and the twins all glared at her.

Stiles had to smile a little in amusement at that. "Whatever. I'm saying it anyway." She then huffed out snootily before continuing. "We can't outnumber them in case they don't show up -- so instead, we let Silver go and give her a message to send to Cable so she doesn't suspect it's a trap, I follow her back to wherever the hell it is they're staying at and then I report back to you guys and we go from there."

Derek nodded. "Yeah, that IS a good plan."

Stiles smiled brightly. "See? Thank you."

Derek scoffed loudly then. "Just one thing, though; how the hell are supposed to follow her without her noticing?" He asked a little smugly as he arched an expected brow.

Stiles would have glared back at him any other time, but not tonight. Tonight, she actually knew what the hell she was talking about. Still, she just hoped that her plan fucking worked. "Ah, I thought you might ask me that." She chimed, grinning slightly in satisfaction when his glare returned. "Since the astral projection thing happened, I've been doing a little reading, about the emissary and their abilities. I even called Deaton up to confirm a few things for me."

"What kind of things?" John asked, sounding slightly dreaded. Sometimes his baby girl really was too curious and it worried him sometimes, too.

And while both Derek and Scott were slightly annoyed that she had kept this from them, they were also slightly hurt by the notion.

Stiles, oblivious, and slightly excited now, continued. "Well, we kinda have magical powers, I guess... Uh, to put it less gay, though -- no offence, Ethan," She grinned when he simply shot her a playful glare. "I was going through some sites last night and I found an old cloaking spell. It was Arabic, so I called Deaton about it and he translated it for me. Seriously, that guy knows everything."

Scott frowned at that. "A cloaking spell? Like, to make you invisible?" He then looked rather keen, to say the least. "Would that really work?" He asked, glancing mainly at Derek.

Derek frowned slightly, clearly thinking about it.

"If it's performed correctly, then yes, of course." Peter panned in from his perch on the spiral staircase of his nephew's loft. "But it has to be perfect," He said, his eyes drifting to his nephew's mate. "There can't be any mistakes in magic. Or the consequences are almost always catatonic." He said, shooting her a look of friendly warning.

Stiles nodded at that. "Yeah. Don't worry, dude. I got that part when I read all about the girl who messed with a wish pendant and ended up getting ripped apart and fed her own insides in one of apparently thousands of many different demon dimensions."

Peter smiled in amusement and nodded in response.

"So, it works on werewolves, too, right?" Lydia asked. "And other supernatural beings?"

Stiles nodded. "Yep. Deaton gave me the lowdown. I'm gonna meet him tomorrow, just wanna make sure I'm doing everything right."

"Stiles," Derek's frown deepened. "Magic is dangerous."

"Yeah, well, we're both danger magnets, remember?" Stiles chirped back with a small, but fond smile. And right now, she knew that the sourwolf probably didn't want to smile, because let's face it, he never did, but she could still see the corners of his pretty, pink lips twitching, though, ever so slightly. "Besides, thanks to my mom, it's in my blood." She added with a casual shrug.

Deucalion nodded at that. "Yes. It should come naturally to you, once you know how." He smiled slightly. "Claudia was even more powerful than Deaton. He'll tell you that himself."

Stiles smiled at that. "You knew my mom?" She perked up considerably at this.

And again, Derek was annoyed. And slightly stung. She couldn't help it, of course he knew that. He would want to know, too. But this was just one more thing that Deucalion was taking away from him. But like the good little Beta he was now (apparently, and only on a good day, really) he kept his mouth shut. Well, for now, anyway.

Deucalion smiled back, a genuine smile and nodded once again. "Not as well as Cable or Talia did, but yes. She was a very kind person. Always thinking of others before herself. Like you, my dear." His smiled widened slightly and though he was only being friendly, Derek really couldn't help feeling all the more annoyed. "You have her eyes."

Stiles smiled somewhat awkwardly. "Uh, thanks."

Derek didn't care anymore, by this point he knew he was blatantly glaring outright. "Do you mind?" He all, but growled.

Scott merely rolled his eyes, while the others -- even fricking John -- tried to hide their smirks.

Deucalion arched a brow at the younger werewolf. And okay, maybe it wasn't such a good idea, but he really couldn't help himself. Besides, he was only messing around. "Is there a problem, Derek?" He asked calmly, a little too calmly, especially when he was wearing a small, but clearly noticeable smirk.

And of course, by now, it didn't matter, because Derek could sense every fucking pair of eyes on him now. And he didn't care anymore. It wasn't as if it was some big secret. Well, not anymore, thanks to his loudmouthed, brat of a little sister. "Yeah." He grunted, his eyes glaring daggers. "You look at her like that again and she'll be the last thing you ever see." He ground out, his voice low as his tightly balled fists shook lightly at his sides.

And wow, others were not expecting that -- as Scott arched a clearly surprised brow, Isaac's jaw nearly dropping to the floor, whereas John was nearly as amused as Peter and Cora. And then the twins, of course, they were practically holding on by a thread, desperately willing themselves not to burst out laughing. And Lydia, of course, who was the only one smirking smugly over at Deucalion, shooting him a "damn right" look.

And hell, even Stiles hadn't expected that. And right now, she was confusingly somewhere between shocked, taken back and oddly touched, but then, also a tiny little bit scared, because, um, holy shit? And she thought that sourwolf had always saved his best glares and threats for HER. And of course, she wanted to open her mouth and say something, because okay, everybody knew how much Stiles loved to talk. But now wasn't the time, and mainly because she had no fucking clue of what to even think, let alone say right now. Ugh.

But then, there was Deucalion, who, it seemed, was the root of the problem here. What problem? A problem Derek had with him apparently. Deucalion's brow arched a little further as his gaze flickered briefly between the two. "Oh, I get it." His smiled widened then, much to Derek's annoyance. "I'm sorry. I didn't know." He held his hands up in defence. But yeah, right, like he didn't know. Like he couldn't practically smell them on one another. But yeah, he wanted his little bit of fun. "Besides, she's far too young... For me, anyway." He mumbled that last part and then chuckled at the somewhat relieved look the teen girl gave when she thought he wouldn't notice.

Stiles smiled sheepishly, then rolling her eyes when sourwolf let out a small, irritated huff. "Relax, big guy. You're still ma Der-Bear." She chuckled, unable to help herself. Okay, she promised, she did, but it was just too perfect right now. And besides, she really wanted to move the fuck out of the awkward conversation.

Derek's glare instantly flickered over to her, though, Stiles chuckled when she caught the slight pouting expression lingering in his gaze, as if he were silently whining: "Why? Why would you do that to me?" And then maybe before she could smirk at that, she saw a slight hint of: "I'll make you pay later." which okay, yeah, really did make Stiles gulp loudly and okay, maybe it kind of also made Derek want to groan as his gaze then moved to her neck at the contracting movement. But it was cool, because he didn't, and he really could have been more proud in that moment.

Scott rolled his eyes at the obvious silent conversation the pair were having before clearing his throat loudly. "Anyway," He chimed, his voice even louder, to which both Stiles and Derek slowly turned to glare at him. He simply smirked before continuing. "If you can make the spell work, I think we should do it." To which Derek glared even harder and Scott rolled his eyes again. "But you cloak one of us as well," He motioned to himself and the other wolves. "For protection, in case anything goes wrong. Which, let's face it, happens a lot for us."

Stiles rolled her eyes, but nodded. "Okay, fine. I'm good with that."

"I'll go with her." Derek said, shooting "his" Alpha a "don't even bother arguing with me on this or I will cut you" kind of look. Seriously, the guy had a really expressive face sometimes.

Scott rolled his eyes again, but nodded, too.

Aiden scoffed blatantly. "Well, THAT was predictable."

To which, again, obviously, Derek glared at him in response...

...When the others had cleared out of the loft for a good night's rest before the night ahead, John had been determined to go back home, but after an hour of arguing, he had finally passed out on the couch. And for this, Stiles was grateful.

Stiles sighed tiredly as she watched her old man snoring lightly, her lips twitching into a small smile as she felt a familiar warmth behind her suddenly. Slowly, she turned around to see Derek standing there with a large, folded, red blanket under his right arm. Her smile widened slightly as he held it out for her. "Thanks." She mumbled, cursing herself mentally as she blushed. She quickly turned back to her father to avoid further embarrassment, unfolding the blanket and throwing it gently over her snoozing father.

"Stiles,"

He wrapped a hand around her wrist and Stiles turned to him, arching a brow to urge him on.

"Are you okay?" Derek stared down at her, right into her eyes, intense, and as fucking always it made her skin fricking scream.

'Like, how is that even possible? Ugh!' And somehow, Stiles knew what he meant, knew what he was asking, why he was asking. "Well, apart from my mom's ex-crazy-Alpha-stalker trying to kill me or who knows what else -- yeah, I'm peachey." She gave him a small smile, but even she knew it was enough. And she could see that he didn't believe her, either. She didn't believe herself, for God's sake.

That wasn't exactly the answer Derek was looking for, but he knew he should have at least expected it. Stiles always liked to joke when things got too hard for her to deal with. And that REALLY didn't work for him. "Hey," He grabbed the back of her neck gently with his other hand and when he rested his forehead lightly on hers and her eyes fluttered briefly, he couldn't help pausing to just look at her and then feel his own heart flutter along with hers. "Cable's not gonna touch you. Ever." He told her, and his tone was sincere as well as firm. "If I had MY way, no one would ever touch you. Not even Scott. Or Lydia."

And while his lighthearted tone and slightly smile showed her that he was joking, Stiles noticed the underlining threat that went with it. 'Wow... He really means that...' And at that thought, Stiles was no longer thinking at all. Her mind seemed to halt suddenly as it tried to process this new information. And then finally -- "But... What about my dad?" And why!? Why can't Stiles just NOT say words sometimes!? Words were bad. They weren't her friend. At least not when stupid, annoyingly sexy sourwolf was around. 'Ugh!'

And oh, God, now Derek was laughing, actually laughing. And while it was probably the most beautiful sound Stiles had ever heard (besides him growling while they kissed, anyway) she also felt slightly embarrassed. Again. "Your dad's okay... Sometimes." He grinned slightly, clearly joking this time.

Stiles rolled her eyes. "Stop laughing at me and kiss me instead." She grumbled, unaware of her blatant pouting.

Derek's grin widened before he pressed a short, but open-mouthed kiss to her lips.

Stiles glowered at him, clearly not satisfied. "That's it?"

"I have a surprise for you." Derek mumbled against her lips, pressing a couple more kisses there, too.

"You know I hate surprises." Stiles muttered back.

"No, you don't." Derek grinned, nipping lightly at her bottom lip and gripping the back of her neck slightly harder as he felt her shiver just as lightly.

"Yes, I do." Stiles smiled lightly, slightly dazed now.

"You'll like this one, I promise." Derek mumbled, both his hands then sliding down her sides and around to grip her ass tightly.

"No, I won't." Stiles breathed deeply, her hands flying up to rest on his amazingly broad shoulders -- like, seriously, did he work out 20 hours a day or something? Because... Damn. Ugh. And then, damn! Stiles gasped loudly as she felt his blunt teeth clamped tightly over the spot right under her ear. "Fuck... I hate you." She whispered as she felt a light suction and the tip of his tongue flickering lightly over her now goosepimpled skin.

Derek grinned as he slowly pulled away, his gaze flickering briefly over to the slumbering Sheriff. "Are you hungry?"

Stiles rolled her eyes and smiled slightly at that. "I'm always hungry." Her hands then flew to her neck in realisation as she felt a slightly delicious pain there. She gasped lightly, her eyes narrowing up at the werewolf. "You gave me hickey!" She hissed, careful not to wake her old man.

Derek's grin widened. "So?" He quirked a brow, his eyes glinting slightly with mischief.

Stiles' eyes narrowed a little further as she fought the urge to smile slightly, because, her skin was totally not humming right now... Only, it kind of was. A lot. "My dad will see it." She shot him her best look of disapproval.

Derek chuckled lightly. "Good." He grinned, much to her dismay. "Think of it as payback, for earlier."

And damn, Stiles really did think she had gotten away with the whole "Der-Bear" thing. Then again, he'd already thrown her out of her bedroom window for it. Huh. Maybe she should have been a little smarter there. But nope, because, yeah... TOTALLY fucking worth it now.


	53. Chapter 53

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I don't like the way he looks at you."

"It's pretty up here." Stiles grinned. She hadn't realised how pretty the town was, all lit up at night time and she was glad that the werewolf had brought her up onto the roof of his loft apartment building. It was mainly just to kill some time, and mainly because neither of them could sleep right now. Stiles was actually feeling a little buzzed about tomorrow, while Derek was quietly concerned. Well, for now on the quiet part, anyway.

"Yeah." Derek nodded as he stood beside her, looking out at the rest of Beacon Hills. "Stiles," He frowned slightly. "We're okay, right?" He turned his head to face her, his expression slightly troubled.

Stiles also turned her head to face him, wearing a small, confused frown of her own. "Um, yeah?" Her heart then sank slightly. "What... Did I --"

"No. It's nothing you did. Fuck, Stiles, NEVER think it's you." And Derek almost sounded pained as he said that. He could practically smell the hurt and disappointment rolling off her then.

Stiles heart then instantly fluttered at his words, but she was still a little confused here. "Then... What're you talking about?"

Derek mentally groaned. She was really going to make him come out and just say it. Then again, he should have known. Stiles always said what she thought. Maybe he should have taken a leaf out of her book on that one. Just for once, anyway. Or maybe even every now and then at least. And only when it concerned Stiles, of course. Because, besides Cora, Derek really wasn't close to anyone, not even his so-called pack, really. "I just, I thought maybe I was outta line back there... With Deucalion... I just, I... I don't like the way he looks at you." He dipped his head, looking away from her somewhat awkwardly as he frowned.

"Oh..." Stiles arched a brow, a little surprised. Since when did Derek Hale ever try to justify himself? Huh. Since now, it seemed. "Um, don't worry about it, it's fine. I mean, he kinda still gives me the creeps, to be honest. Like, even more than Peter does. And that's really saying something. So, um, thank you, in fact..." She blushed lightly when she saw him grinning at her by now. "I REALLY hope Scott doesn't let him join the pack."

Derek scoffed loudly at that and nodded in agreement. "Yeah. You don't need to worry about THAT. There's NO way I'm letting that happen. Ever. And I don't care who the fricking Alpha of our pack is."

Stiles chuckled lightly at the adorably stubborn scowl across the werewolf's brow. "So, have YOU ever used magic before?" She asked curiously. "And no, Lydia using you to resurrect Peter doesn't count." She added with a toothy smile.

Derek broke out of his scowl at that and huffed out laugh. "As a matter of fact, yeah." He nodded, smiling when her eyes widened with excitement. "My mother didn't want me messing with it and there was no way that Deaton would ever teach me after my mother gave him a stern warning, so I asked Peter to teach me a little bit about it. We used to do a few spells every now and then; tricks, I guess -- like turning Laura into a frog on her seventeenth birthday." He grinned at the memory of that. "My mother literally beat the shit out of us for that one."

Stiles chuckled, clearly amused. "So, you were pretty much a rebel puppy from the start, huh?" She asked with a small, but teasing grin.

Derek arched a brow, smirking as he slowly turned, her hands lightly gripping the small of her waist, causing her to gasp quietly. "I am NOT a puppy." He snarled quietly before quickly reaching down to give her bottom lip a playful nip.

Oh, God, like she didn't even know that already? But still, she couldn't help herself. Stiles grinned slowly, but widely and from under her thick lashes up at him and wow, she almost swore she could actually hear his sharp intake of breath there. And yep, she watched curiously (and maybe somewhat smugly) as his expression hardened, his eyes darkening slowly as his pupils widened. "But... You're still MY puppy... Right?" She asked all too sweetly, now fighting back the urge to just burst the fuck out laughing. Oh, how she loved to tease.

Derek's grip on her waist tightened slightly, his gaze intense on her own. "You REALLY need to stop saying things like that." He mumbled, leaning forward until his forehead was planted on her right shoulder. He took a moment to compose himself, panting silently as his eyes fluttered. And fuck, why the hell did he rest his head right next to that spot under her ear; the spot that drove him almost insane here. Ugh.

Stiles' smirk faltered slightly as she felt his warm and heavy breath on her skin. She shivered lightly, her hands slowly sliding up the back of his shoulders, making him shiver lightly in return before coming to rest on the back of his neck. "Derek," She whispered.

Derek's chest vibrated lightly as a low, but soft growl rippled slowly up his throat. As he felt her fingertips lightly playing with the hair at the back of his neck, his eye screwed shut this time.

Stiles reached one hand to the side of his face, gently forcing him to look at her. She then frowned as she saw his eyes were tightly screwed shut, his brow creasing with worry. "Let me see your eyes." She whispered, feeling a little brave as she slowly reached forward and planted a quick, but soft kiss to the werewolf's lips.

Derek let out a small sigh of defeat, already feeling his resolve quickly crumbling away. He then did as he was told, slowly cracking his eyes open, his glowing, electric-blue orbs boring back down into her own bright, whisky-amber ones.

And it wasn't even as if she was even trying to make him feel better, but the smile that slowly etched its way across Stiles' lips was automatic, and real. "Why're you hiding?" She asked, frowning in confusion. "You NEVER hide." She added with a grin and a playful roll of her eyes.

Derek smiled weakly and nodded. "I never lose control, either." He mumbled hopelessly as his eyes returned to normal. "And it's YOUR fault." His smiled widened slightly, his eyes glinting with amusement.

"Oh, please," Stiles scoffed. "It can't be THAT bad." She shot him a look of disbelief when he simply stared at her in response. "I mean, Scott seems to be doing okay with Allison. And you were born a werewolf, dude. Seriously, I'm not like, trying to boost your ego here or anything, but Derek," She shot him a meaningful, though, also slightly incredulous look. Like seriously, why does this guy always like to beat himself up? Does he enjoy hating himself or something? Stiles frowned slightly at that thought before quickly continuing when she realised he was staring down at her. "You're practically the most altogether and level-headed person I've ever met... Like even more than my dad or Melissa. Which is, again, really saying something."

Derek frowned curiously, though, his lips twitched into a small smile. "I'm not as high-minded as you might think." He said, his tone soft, but serious.

Stiles scoffed again and rolled her eyes. "Maybe not." She shrugged casually. "But right now, you're kinda the only person I feel safe with." She blushed lightly.

Derek's smile widened slightly, his chest clenching painfully, but it felt so fricking wonderful. And even if there were still doubts in the back of his mind, he couldn't help feeling warmed by her words. "Well, I know I don't always make the best decisions, but I meant what I said; I'm not gonna let anything bad happen to you, ever. I promise."

Stiles rolled her eyes again, but couldn't help grinning. "Yeah, well, you can't exactly promise something like that. No one can." She shot him a pointed look. "Besides, I knew what I was getting myself into when I stuck by Scott after all the crazy shit began to happen." She chuckled lightly at that.

"You love him a lot." Derek smiled lightly, then chuckling when her eyes widened. "I meant as a brother. I know how close you two are. I think everyone does." He shot her a pointed look in return.

"Oh..." Stiles blushed slightly, embarrassed. "Uh, yeah. I've known him since the diaper days. He's my true soul-bro-mate." She smiled fondly.

Derek chuckled lightly before leaning forward and placing a soft kiss to her lips...

...Scott grinned widely as he wrapped his arms around his mate and held her close. "God, I missed you." He whispered as he nose the flesh under her ear.

"I was only gone for three days." Allison giggled lightly as she turned around on her bed to face him.

Scott pouted. "You didn't miss me?" He mumbled.

Allison rolled her eyes. "Of course I did, you idiot." She chimed before leaning forward and pressing her lips to his. She then placed her hands on his chest, shoving him gently so that he was lying on his back. She smirked as she quickly moved to straddle his lower stomach, her hands still resting firmly on his (unfortunately) t-shirt covered pecks. "So, what'd I miss?"

"Uh, besides the crazy plan Stiles came up with?" Scott asked, arching a brow.

Allison smirked. "You need to give her more credit." She mumbled before lowering her lips back to his. "And I was talking about her and Derek." She grinned mischievously, her lips barely an inch apart from his as she stared down at him.

"Oh. I dunno. Stiles didn't let me ask any questions." Scott pouted slightly at that, earning another giggle from his girl. "I guess they probably made out -- her heart was racing when I asked her about it. Ugh." He made a face of disgust. "It's still kinda weird; them two together... But whatever, if she's happy, I guess."

Allison grinned widely, rolling her eyes again. "Oh, come on, I think it's really sweet."

Scott rolled his eyes this time, but couldn't help smirking slightly. "You WOULD think that." He grumbled, shooting her a playful glare.

Allison simply smiled innocently in response before leaning down and capturing his lips again. And this time, there was no more talking. At least, not for another few hours. And thank fuck Chris was out for his Tuesday night of poker.


	54. Chapter 54

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "It's just like riding a bike."

"Okay," Scott glanced around, his eyes drifting slowly over each member of his pack (minus Danny, who Ethan made to stay away for his own protection -- after a lot of arguing, anyway). "Before any crazy shit goes down, the rest of us are to stay put, right here, until Stiles and Derek come back and I know they're safe, until I know everyone is safe."

Derek stood a little bit away from the group, standing by his loft window and watching with a small smile. He had to admit, the kid was a pretty good leader. He certainly did a better job of being an Alpha than Derek had, and that also kind of shamed the older werewolf. Even if he was oddly proud of the kid in brotherly sort of way.

"Chris," Scott turned to the hunter. "How's Silver doing?" He asked. Not that he gave a shit. Which is why he was smirking slightly as he asked.

Chris grinned. "I tranqed her. She's chained up in my trunk. Give her half twenty minutes or so."

Scott chuckled and nodded. "Okay, good." He turned to his best friend and the vet. "You got everything you need?"

Deaton nodded. "Don't worry," He shot Stiles a reassuring smile when he noticed her slightly worried expression. "After you do it once, it's easy."

Stiles nodded, taking a deep breath as Derek slowly made his way over to stand beside her. "So, what'd we have to do exactly?" She asked, biting nervously at her bottom lip.

"Well, I sprinkle some wolfsbane on you both and then you both say the words 'unbind' three times in unison and then... You both disappear..." Deaton smiled in amusement, knowing just how he sounded right now. "Well, you both become invisible to all of the senses of all beings. They won't be able to see you or hear you or smell you or sense you at all. And neither will we."

"Wait -- wolfsbane?" Cora piped up, looking slightly worried for her big brother.

Deaton smiled knowingly. "Don't worry, it's from my special batch, it won't harm Derek. Or any other werewolf, for that matter. I actually use it on some of the dogs at the vet, whenever I run out of pain-killers."

Cora simply nodded, clearly satisfied with his explanation.

"How long does the spell last?" Derek asked.

"Stiles chose carefully; did her homework well, like she always does." Deaton smiled over at the teen girl -- who smiled sheepishly in return. "She's a smart girl." He stated before turning back to the werewolf to answer him. "This spell isn't time limited. All you need to do is say the word 'reveal'."

Stiles arched a brow as Derek simply nodded. "Yeah, right." She scoffed. "That's it? Seriously?" She asked.

Deaton chuckled, some of the others grinning. "That's it." He nodded.

"Huh." Stiles shrugged lazily. "Okay."

"So, this, uh, spell," John piped up, shaking his head as he said the word 'spell' in a rather incredulous manner. "It's completely safe, right?" He asked, glancing warily between his daughter, Derek, Deaton and Scott -- the younger three all then turning to Deaton for the same answer.

Deaton smiled and nodded again. "Of course. Anyone can do it, if they know how. It's just like riding a bike."

John nodded, clearly pleased with that answer. "Okay, good. I, uh, I just wanted to make sure my daughter wasn't going to end up turning into a toad or anything." He mumbled, shooting the group a sheepish look.

Stiles grinned knowingly over at Derek, who simply rolled his eyes at her, but she knew he wanted to smile, too, she could see the corners of his lips slightly twitching. 'Too easy, Hale. You are too easy to read sometimes. Ha!' She smiled smugly to herself at that thought as she turned back to face the others.

"Okay, but what about this stupid message we're supposed to be sending werebitch on her way with?" Lydia finally piped up, having had enough. She really didn't think was a good idea in the first place. She had a bad feeling about it, in fact. And there was no way that she was going to just sit back and let it happen.

"If something bad DOES happen; I'll know." Scott stated confidently.

Lydia scoffed. "And then what?" She asked, arching an expectant brow. "We can all run along to save the day, only to find that we were too late."

"She's kinda not wrong there." Isaac piped up thoughtfully.

Lydia shot the young wolf an appreciative glance before glaring back at their idiot Alpha -- as she liked to call him. His heart was always in the right place and the redhead really did like him, but he really was stupid sometimes, that was for sure. "I say that we ALL use the cloaking spell." She stated before turning to the vet. "You got enough for all of us? Or at least, a few of us? Just for back up." She shot him a look somewhere between firmness and pleading.

Deaton nodded, digging a hand into his jacket pocket and pulling out a small, black, silk sack, tied up with a small, golden thread of string. "I probably have enough for five of you." He announced as he carefully opened the sack and took a quick peak to check.

Lydia nodded. "Well, that's better than nothing. And if Deucalion's right," She shot him a "you fucking better be" look before turning back to the vet. "Then that's already outnumbering them."

Deaton nodded in agreement before he and the others glanced to their Alpha for his input.

Scott glanced around before sighing loudly in defeat and nodding. "Yeah. Go for it." He said, earning a whole lot of relieved sighs and happy grins. "But we chose carefully. Three more places left."

"You should go." Deaton looked at the young Alpha with a reassuring smile. "You're a good leader, Scott. And you always seemed to lead your pack; your friends through Hell and back."

"Yeah. I'm good with that." Stiles nodded, smiling fondly at her best friend. "Dude, I know I've saved your furry ass a lot, but you always do the save for me; you always pull through, for all of us."

Scott rolled his eyes playfully, but couldn't help smiling. "Oh, God, don't get all mushy on me. Please." He shot her a half-hearted glare. "You're talking like we're all gonna die, dude."

Stiles rolled her eyes this time. "No, I'm not. I was trying to be sentimental, you jackass." She shot him a full-hearted glare in return.

"You're such a girl." Scott chuckled, smirking in amusement when she reached over and punched him in the chest. "That hurt." He pouted slightly, clearly mocking her.

Stiles' eyes narrowed even further as she quickly flipped him her middle finger before crossing her arms over her chest.

Derek smirked slightly to himself, fighting back the urge to roll his eyes at their antics.

"Anyway, a little more muscle behind us might help, so I say the twins come with us. They besides Derek, they have the most experience here." Scott said.

"Uh, hello?" Peter scowled at the young Alpha.

Stiles smirked. "Oh, please. Like you could even help." She scoffed lightly. "What would you even do? Stand and watch? You're partially impaired -- remember?" She asked, shooting him a teasing grin.

Peter simply shot her a glare in response, while the some of the others chuckled in amusement.

"Perhaps I could help." Deucalion piped up.

Scott scoffed. "Oh, no. No, no. I don't trust you enough for you to play by our sides in the field."

Deucalion a little disappointed, but nodded anyway. "Fair enough."

"Besides, you guys can still do that scaring merging thing, right?" Isaac asked, facing the twins.

Ethan nodded. "Yeah."

"Obviously." Aiden scoffed. "We were demoted to Betas -- we don't have amnesia. OR performance issues." He added that last part while shooting Peter a highly amused smirk.

Both Isaac and Peter simply glared back at the twin in response.

Scott chuckled. "Okay, well, good to know. That'll come in handy if we DO run into any trouble."

"Hey, it's time." Allison piped up, checking her iPhone quickly. "The tranqs on Silver should be wearing off around now."

Scott nodded before glancing towards, Stiles, Derek and Deaton. "You guys ready?"


	55. Chapter 55

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Puny Alpha."

"I'm going to need you to stand in a tightly knit circle, back to back. You must all disappear at once, as one." Deaton explained.

Standing in a circle beside one another, Scott, Stiles, Derek, Ethan and Aiden all did as they were told.

"And you'll need to link hands." Deaton added, opening the small bag up, ready for use.

Again, the five did as they were told as the rest of the group stood by in the loft, watching silently.

"Okay," Deaton stood in front of Scott, readying himself. "On the count of three, I'll toss the wolfsbane over your heads, and then on the count of three again, you all chant the word 'unbind' three times." He recapped. "Are we all ready?" He asked, glancing over to each of them -- to which they all chorused a 'yes.' Deaton nodded. "Okay... One... Two... Three..." He then raised his hands, emptying the entire contents of the small bag over them.

"One..." Scott whispered.

"Two..." Stiles whispered.

"Three..." Derek confirmed.

"Unbind, unbind, unbind..." The five chanted in unison, their hands all gripping at one another's.

Stiles screwed her eyes shut as a bright white light appeared throughout the entire loft, temporarily blinding them all. She then jumped slightly in shock at the sound of a loud thunderous noise. And then... Silence. Slowly, she relaxed her tense shoulders, just as slowly cracking her eyes open and glancing around to see that absolutely nothing had changed. "Uh... Did it even work?" She frowned.

Scott smirked. "Yeah." He murmured, slowly releasing his hands from Stiles and Derek to walk over and wave his hand in front of Deaton's face. "It worked, alright."

"Scott?" Deaton called out, staring blinding at the spot they were in. "Are you all okay?"

Scott gave the go ahead nod towards his best friend.

"Oh, right!" Stiles quickly pulled out her iPhone and sent a quick text to the redhead.

"This is insane." John mumbled, shaking his head to himself.

"THIS is nothing. This is just one of the first of the very many layers of magic." Peter cut in smoothly with a smug smirk.

"Oh! That's probably Stiles." Lydia quickly reached into her pocket as she felt her own iPhone vibrating. She opened the new text message and grinned widely after reading it. "Yep." She nodded. "They're okay. They're still here."

Deaton smiled, looking relieved as he nodded. "Chris and Allison have already let Silver go. She's got a five minute head start."

"We track her scent." Aiden said, though, glancing to his Alpha first.

Scott nodded. "Stiles, text Lydia, tell her we're leaving now and that no one is to leave the loft under any circumstances until we get back."

Stiles nodded, her nimble fingers already typing ferociously away. "And sent." She mumbled.

"Okay, let's do this." Scott muttered before marching towards the elevator, the other four following closely behind him...

"...What the hell?" Stiles frowned as she watched Silver stumble through the old, Hale house in the middle of the forest. She glanced over to sourwolf, who was glaring daggers at the werewolf who had just entered his childhood house.

"Why the heck would she come here?" Ethan wondered out loud, looking confused.

"Maybe she's just hitting up old haunts?" Aiden suggested.

Derek scoffed. "No. Cable was always trying to take this place away from my mother. God, I'm idiot. I should have known." He grunted through gritted teeth.

"Yeah, maybe." Scott piped up, not looking all that convinced. "But Silver might just be looking for a place to regroup before going back to him."

Stiles' frown deepened slightly. "I dunno... Something feels off to me." She mumbled, gaining all four werewolves' attention.

"I don't hear any other heartbeats." Aiden stated.

"And I don't smell any other wolves." Ethan added.

"What'd you feel, Stiles?" Derek asked, staring curiously at her, causing the others to do so, too.

"Uh, I dunno, really." Stiles shrugged, shooting them a hopeless look.

"Wait," Scott frowned, glancing back to the house. "I can't hear Silver's heartbeat anymore, either." He stated, causing the others to listen in.

"Me, neither." Aiden agreed, Ethan confirming with a negative nod, too.

"What the hell? She can't just vanish." Derek muttered, not being able to hear anything, either.

"Wait -- what's that?" Stiles pointed towards the house. "There, at the top of the front door." She shuffled through the dead leaves and warily closer to the house, the werewolves following closely behind her.

"Some kinda symbol." Scott muttered, staring up at the door along with the others.

"It looks like an anchor." Stiles observed. "Oh, there's another one at the bottom." She pointed to the bottom of the scratched up, red front door. "That definitely looks like an eye."

"It's the All-Seeing Eye." Derek stated.

"Like, in Lord of the Rings?" Scott asked, looking less than impressed. "Seriously?"

Derek shot him a look of confusion.

Stiles smirked at the uncultered werewolf. "Why do you bother with the TV references with this guy?" She asked her idiot best friend. "And seriously!? You watched Lord of the Rings, but you STILL haven't seen Star Wars!? Ugh! I give up with BOTH of you." She grumbled, causing both werewolves to smirk slightly at one another.

"Star Wars, all the way." Ethan piped up, earning a grin from the human.

"See? HE gets it." Stiles chirped.

Derek merely rolled his eyes, Scott grinning in amusement.

"Okay, first of all; no. Just... Just no." Aiden said. "Lord of the Rings is WAY better. In every way. Better violence, better C.G.I, better plot, just... Just better." He stated, earning a glare from both his twin and the girl. He rolled his eyes before continuing. "And second of all; the All-Seeing Eye, in this case, is a symbol of secrecy, a kinda 'the-walls-have-ears' sorta deal."

"So, what does the anchor mean?" Stiles asked.

"The same thing; to literally ground something." Aiden explained.

"But these two symbols together mean the exact opposite." Derek explained further.

"Huh. That's why you guys can't hear or see Silver anymore." Stiles said.

Derek nodded.

"They use the symbols to keep hidden." Scott said.

"Which means that Cable's probably here, too." Derek noted, glaring back at the house again. "Son of bitch thinks he can just waltz back into town and take what's mine?" He ground out.

Stiles new that he probably meant the house that he'd grown up in, but she was still kind of hoping he meant her, too. She was his -- was she not? Not that she minded. 'It's Derek fricking Hale. Course I don't care... Even if he's a dick sometimes. But he already explained his ass-hat behaviour. So it's all good still, right? ...God, I hope it's all good, still.'

"Yeah, well, we don't know that he's in there for sure." Scott stated before reaching out and slowly pushing the front door open.

"Wait, what about the spell? Our spell, I mean." Ethan said. "It'll still work in there, right?"

Stiles nodded. "Yeah, it'll be fine." And that, she was actually sure of, somehow. She then slowly followed after the others, glaring at the back of sourwolf's head when he gently shoved her behind him. "Dude, I'm totally safe. We all are." She stated, shooting him a pointed look.

Derek narrowed his eyes at her. "We're not safe until we're all back at my place."

Stiles rolled her eyes. "Whatever." She mumbled before shoving passed him, as well as the others.

Derek's jaw tightened slightly in annoyance. Though, for now, he kept his mouth shut.

Scott rolled his eyes, unable to help smirking slightly. "We should probably split up, anyway. I'll take the back rooms downstairs." He stated before wondering off further into the house.

"I'll take the main rooms." Aiden announced before he, too, disappeared further into the darkness of the house.

"We'll take upstairs." Derek stated. "You stay down here, too. It's bigger, more ground to cover."

Ethan nodded, slowly sauntering off, too.

"Don't wonder off." Derek shot his mate a pointed look.

Stiles merely rolled her eyes...

...Cable grinned to himself. "They're here."

Charlie's orbs widened. "What!?" He snapped, glaring over at his big sister. "You let them track you!?"

Silver looked bewildered and slightly angry, too. "What!? No, I didn't! That's impossible!"

"Clearly not!" Charlie barked, scowling down at her. "And what -- you think they let you off without a catch!? Come on, Sil, you're not stupid, so don't act like it!"

"Now, Charlie, it's not Silver's fault." Cable stated, earning confused looks from them both. "Seems like we're not the only ones who want to stay hidden."

"What'd you mean?" Charlie asked, arching a brow.

"Magic? Is it a spell?" Silver asked, looking a little more clued-up. "It has to be. It's the only way."

Charlie rolled his eyes at that, whereas Cable turned to her, his grin slowly widening...

...Stiles did as she was told, sticking beside the sourwolf. For now, anyway. She understood his need to protect, but it was still annoying as it was sweet sometimes. Okay, most of the time. Especially when they were in these types of situations. "Do you hear anything?" She asked as they wondered slowly through the hallway.

"No." Derek said. "Look." He pointed to the same symbols carved into each of the doors.

"Huh." Stiles arched a brow, not having noticed until now. "Guess we're not the only ones trying to hide around here." She muttered to herself.

Derek nodded. He then crept silently towards the first door, on the left, slowly reaching out and pushing it open.

Stiles copied his actions, kicking the opposite door lightly and letting it open the rest of the way. "Derek," Her breathing hitched slightly and the werewolf was by her side within a heartbeat.

Derek peered into the room, his gaze settling on a tall, dark figure looming in the shadows by the window. As far as he could tell, the figure was male, his back facing them as he stared out of the half broken window. He gently reached for Stiles' wrist, pulling her slowly behind him before taking a few, careful steps into the room.

"Derek," Stiles bit her bottom lip hard, her pulse ringing in her ears now. "Uh, be, um, be careful." She mumbled, staring over at the unmoving figure nervously.

Derek nodded, the corners of his lips twitching slightly as took a few closer steps...

...Scott sighed loudly in boredom as he wandered around what was once probably a really nice family kitchen, now charred to the core. And just when he thought he couldn't be any more bored, a voice piped up from behind him.

"Well, hello, chief."

Scott froze for a moment, his jaw tightening as he slowly then turned to face the she wolf. His widened eyes then slowly relaxed when he realised she was staring blindly; she still couldn't see him. But he still wondered just how the fuck she knew someone was even there.

Silver chuckled, her dark orbs lit up in pure amusement. "I know you're there pup... Reveal."

Scott stumbled back slightly as an invisible force pushed into him. He shook his head, feeling a little dizzy for a few moments. And when he regained his senses, he glanced back up at her to see her looking right at him.

Silver grinned wickedly. "And there you are..."

...Stiles let out a small gasp, Derek freezing completely as the figure finally moved, slowly turning around. Though, still not coming out of the shadows.

"Reveal."

Derek growled in annoyance as an invisible force pushed him back, making him stumble back into the human. He quickly reached out, grabbing gently at her wrist again to keep her from falling flat on her face. Or her ass. 'Her peachey, little -- really, Derek? You're having these kinda thoughts NOW?' He then mentally scalded himself for that one.

"What the fuck?" Stiles breathed, feeling a sudden dizziness wash over her.

"Are you okay?" Derek asked after quickly shaking off his own dizziness.

"She'll be fine."

Stiles' eyes widened as they landed on the red, glowing ones planted on her.

The figure then slowly moved out of the shadows, his red, blazing orbs still settled on the pretty, little human.

Derek glared over at him, unafraid, as always. "What did you do?" He snarled.

Cable smirked, rolling his eyes. "Oh, please. Like you don't know. Talia didn't raise no idiots."

Derek snarled louder. "Don't talk about my mother! Don't even THINK about her!"

Cable chuckle, his glowing orbs lit with amusement as they then settled on the other werewolf, seemingly taking his appearance in. "My, my Derek. You have grown." He stated fondly. "And don't you just look fierce. You have that same fire in your eyes that she did. You even have her eyes." And even if he was taunting the boy, he still meant his words. And even if he and Talia hadn't always gotten along, he had always admired her. Although, he would never admit such a thing out loud. His eyes then shifted back to the human, his grin widening even more, if that was fricking possible. "And little Gamora, come home to me -- have you?"

And Stiles didn't know what the fuck, okay? Something inside of her just snapped. "Don't EVER get to call me that! NO ONE calls me that!" She practically screamed, actually aching her throat to the core. And she swore that she could actually feel the walls shaking a little by it. But maybe it was just her imagination.

And it was at those words that Cable literally then went sailing back, his back smashing into the partially broken, charred walls. He sunk to the floor with a breathy chuckle, bits of the wall and dust falling around him.

Derek's eyes widened at that and as he turned to shoot Stiles a "what the fuck was that?" look, he found her expression was pretty much the same as his own.

'Okay... Definitely NOT my crazy imagination...' Stiles stared down at herself, feeling her entire body tremble slightly, though, not out of fear. More like out of complete and utter fury. "What the fuck?" She mumbled under her breath, her wide and confused orbs settling back on the Alpha.

"Well," Cable let out another breathy chuckle as he slowly pulled himself back up onto his feet. "I did not expect that."

Stiles shot him a withering look. "Oh, really?" She asked, her tone dripping with sarcasm. "'Cause I heard all about you and my mother. You knew what she was. You know what I am." She ground out, glaring at him now.

"A Spark." Cable smiled fondly. "MY Spark. Just like your mother was."

Derek let out a loud, threatening growl, but was quickly cut off, again.

"In your fucking dreams, punk!" Stiles snapped, her eyes darkening slightly. "My mother was never yours! She NEVER loved you!"

Cable snarled, taking a threatening step forward.

In an instant, Derek was in front of the human again, much to her utter annoyance. "You want her?" He glared, his own orbs glowing electric blue and his canines growing. "I'll rip your throat out before you can even try."

Cable simply scoffed before reaching forward and grabbing the Beta by the throat, lifting him slowly so that his feet were barely touching the floor. "Aren't you forgetting something Derek?" He taunted.

"Let him go, you fucktwat!" Stiles roared. She then lunged forward, only to be merely batted away, causing her to fly across the room.

Derek flinched as he watched his mate crash headfirst into the nearest wall. He then let out an angry snarl, glaring down at the other werewolf.

Cable chuckled, his own blazing, red orbs lit up in amusement. "I can see why your mind may be a little preoccupied right now." He smirked suggestively, his gaze flickering to the now unconscious teenager. "But I'm an Alpha, Derek."

Derek winced as he felt the Alpha's claws digging into his neck, drawing small streams of blood. His eyes then widened in somewhat surprise when he noticed a very large and pissed off werewolf standing in the doorway. He smirked slightly, causing Cable to turn around just in time to see the larger werewolf reach for him.

"What the fuck!?" Cable snarled as the twins grabbed the Alpha by the throat instead.

Derek sucked in a huge breath as he was released, falling to his knees with a loud gasp.

Ethan and Aiden -- merged into their larger form, as one grabbed the Alpha around the neck in one hand. The twins glared down at the trembling werewolf, slowly reaching their free hand up and placing it on top of Cable's head.

"Stop!" Cable snarled, his voice angry, but desperate now. "What the fuck is this freak!?"

Derek smirked as slowly walked over to the twins, his unconscious mate held tightly to his chest, his arms securely wrapped around her. "Thanks, boys." He chirped.

The twins nodded back, a wicked smirk forming across their lips as they stared back down at the Alpha.

"No! No, wait! N --"

Derek winced lightly at the sound of a loud crack echoing throughout the empty shell of a house.

The twins carelessly tossed the Alpha's now lifeless body onto the floor. They then turned back to face the smaller Beta. "Puny Alpha." They both ground out with a huff as they shuffled back out of the room, as if nothing had even happened.

Derek arched a brow as he watched after the huge beast. He then glanced back to the so-called Alpha, one last time. It was over. But... It didn't feel over. Somehow.


	56. Chapter 56

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Come on, Gamora, don't be afraid..."

"I don't get you, Silver." Scott said, his voice calm as he casually tossed the she wolf across the room when she threw herself at him. "We're both Alphas. And you already know that I'm not here alone. How'd you think you're gonna win?" He shook his head at that, a small, amused smile hanging from the corners of his lips. It wasn't really in his nature to taunt and show off, but this werebitch deserved it. Especially after all she had put his best friend; his soul sister through.

Silver growled in annoyance, glaring defiantly over at him as she quickly scrambled to her feet. "Screw you!"

Scott chuckled at that. "Wow. Good comeback."

Silver snarled viciously before lunging for him again. Only this time, he caught her by the throat with ease. And as he pulled her close, his red orbs burning into her own, she glared up at him angrily. "This isn't about you! It's not ALWAYS about you!" She ground out.

Scott arched a brow. "I'll kill Cable before he even tries to take Stiles." He promised, his tone low, though, still calm.

Silver scoffed loudly. "Please. Like I even give a shit about that worthless sack of human flesh." She stated with bitterness laced deep in her tone.

Scott looked a little confused now. "But Cable --"

Silver let out a bitter laugh. "He's stupid obsession has nothing to do with me."

Scott listened to her racing heartbeat, not hearing even a minuscule flutter out of place. He glanced into her red orbs, trying to read her and that was when the realisation suddenly clicked in his mind for him. "It's Peter." He mumbled. "You came back for Peter... Didn't you?" And when her gaze flickered briefly from his, it was enough of an answer for him. "You're still in love with him... Aren't you?"

Silver snarled loudly at that, struggling slightly against his iron-grasp on her throat. "I came back to kill him!"

Scott arched a brow, not quite believing her there. "You're lying. I don't need to listen to your heart to know that." He stated, his expression slowly darkening now. "You don't give a crap about me or Derek or Stiles or your own stupid pack, you just want Peter. You tortured my best friend! For nothing." He ground out, now glaring daggers at her as his grip on her neck tightened a little.

Silver let out a mocking laugh. "Well, I had fun, at least."

Scott growled, gripping her neck even tighter. "Yeah? Well, not it's MY turn to have some fun..."

"...Is she okay?" Ethan asked, staring at the unconscious human in concern.

Derek briefly glanced down the small, limp body in his arms before giving a nod. "She will be."

"And what'd we do about HIM?" Aiden asked, motioning over the Alpha's lifeless body.

"Yeah, he'll be back." Ethan added.

"We should have just torn his head off." Aiden grumbled.

Ethan rolled his eyes. "And then we become Alphas again?" He wrinkled his face at that. "No, thank you."

Aiden rolled his eyes to himself, but said nothing. It was true for him, too. He'd never want to be Alpha again. Not after everything. Besides, he felt pretty content and happy even with the way things were now.

Derek glanced over to the Alpha. "Scott will have to kill him."

Ethan nodded. "Where is Scott, by the way?"

"I haven't seen him since we got here." Aiden stated, looking slightly worried.

"Yeah... Scott's a LITTLE busy with my sister right now."

The three werewolves' heads snapped up in unison at the sound of a fourth voice. Their gazes all landed on who Derek recognised to be the werewolf who had broken into his mate and her father's house, to which Derek glared instantly...

...Silver grunted in pain as she landed against the staircase, her limbs starting to ache and burn slightly now.

"So, what'd Peter do to make you wanna kill him?" Scott asked curiously. "I mean, not that wanting to kill the guy is all that difficult." He aired with a roll of his now brown orbs.

"Why don't go you ask Peter?" Silver spat out venomously.

"Oh, I will." Scott smirked slightly. "I just thought you might wanna share your side of the story, seeing as how Peter likes to always twist his words."

Silver chuckled at that, actually looking rather amused. "Yes, he does." Though, the tone of her voice was still filled with fury...

...Stiles winced a little, but otherwise kept herself completely still. She was awake now, aware of the warmth surrounding her as well as the familiar voices talking around her. And somehow, she managed to keep herself calm and keep her pulse calm, not wanting the wolves to know she was now conscious. For now, she just listened.

"Stiles..."

'Cooter? Is that you?' Stiles stayed still, her mind racing as she listened carefully to the demon's familiar voice.

"Wait, and listen..."

And Stiles did just that. For now. Even if she didn't what she was supposed to be listening for. Or waiting for. But she trusted the demon. She had no reason not to.

"Hello, Derek." Charlie grinned, his canines bared with his teasing expression.

Derek said nothing, only continued to glare as his jaw tightened.

Charlie glanced passed the others and over to the dead Alpha lying on the floor. He arched a brow, wearing a slightly surprised expression. "You killed my Alpha." He shot them a scowl as he then slowly shuffled around them to stand beside his Alpha.

Derek, Ethan and Aiden all watched carefully, their gazes glued to the other Beta's every movement.

And then, something unexpected happened. Charlie grinned widely again as he slowly knelt down beside the Alpha's body. "And here I was thinking the old bastard never die." He chimed before gripping the Alpha's cold throat in his clawed hand.

Derek's eyes widened immediately. "Stop him!" He roared, knowing exactly what was about to happen.

The twins let out a snarl as they leaped for the other Beta, but by then, it was already too late. They halted at the sound of tearing flesh and the smell of werewolf blood, their eyes widening along with Derek's.

"Listen, listen, Stiles..." The voice grew slightly more panicked now, and Stiles tried her hardest. 'Listen to what!?' Her mind practically screamed.

Charlie's grin widened slowly into a sinister one as he felt the power already rushing through his veins. He slowly rose to his feet, letting Cable's lifeless and now bloody carcass slip from his clawed hand. "Guess who else is an Alpha now." He taunted, his voice deep, his eyes then burning from blue to red.

Derek's eyes widened, as did the twins'.

"Oh," Ethan muttered.

"Shit." Aiden finished for him.

"Come on, Gamora, don't be a afraid..."

And something inside of Stiles snapped at that. Something infuriated. "Don't call me that!" And this time, she knew the walls of the house were trembling violently. Her eyes snapped open, her body jolting violently out of the werewolf's arms and for once, she didn't fall flat on her face, this time, she fell gracefully back to her feet.

"Stiles!?" Derek's eyes widened even more, if that was possible, though, he looked alarmed, almost... Afraid?

"That's it... Listen, listen, listen..."

Stiles smirked slightly to herself. She knew what the demon meant now. "I'm listening now." She whispered to herself.

"Listen to your mind, and to your heart... Always."

And it was then that Stiles could feel her guide leaving her again, her smirk widening slightly as her now completely black orbs settled on the new Alpha.


	57. Chapter 57

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Goodbye, son."

"Oh, you wanna play, little girl." Charlie let out a little, amused chuckle.

Stiles merely stood there, her entire body calm, her black orbs still glued to the newly turned Alpha.

"Stiles," Derek didn't know whether to reach for her or not. He could smell no fear coming from her, nor any anger.

"Uh, what's happening?" Aiden muttered, looking just as confused as Derek.

Whereas, Ethan smiled knowingly to himself. "Kick his ass, girly." He mumbled under his breath.

And this, of course, caused Charlie to let out a bittersweet laugh. "HER? Kick MY ass?"

...Deaton stared out of the loft window, only, he wasn't really paying attention to the view. Or anything else around him, for that matter. He could feel it; feel her; one of his own; rising finally.

"Are you okay?"

Deaton snapped out of his thoughts and turned to give the young she wolf a reassuring smile.

Cora nodded. "What is it?" She asked, shooting him an all too knowing look.

Deaton's smile simply widened as he replied. "Stiles is finally listening."

Cora arched a brow, looking somewhat confused, but intrigued...

...Derek didn't really know what the heck was going on. All he knew right now was what his instincts were telling him to do: fight; protect. But then, there was something stopping him and again, he wasn't sure if that something was something good or something bad. Although, it didn't feel all that bad. It felt... Familiar. A feeling he had only ever felt around his mother: safe; protected.

"So, what? You boys are gonna hide behind the pretty sack of flesh now?" Charlie taunted, shaking his head. "You disappoint me. Especially you, Derek."

Derek glared angrily over at him. "Oh, you wanna fight? I'll give you a fight." He snarled before moving towards the Alpha.

"Don't." Again, the walls trembled slightly around them at the incredibly low tone of Stiles' voice.

And Derek felt himself halt automatically. Though, the feeling was very different from an Alpha tone. He felt almost compelled to oblige, rather than forced out of his own free will.

Aiden arched an impressed brow, while Ethan tried to hold onto a small, but clearly amused chuckle.

And Charlie, too, seemed highly amused. "She's such a feisty, little thing, isn't she? I can see why you keep her around." He chirped, shooting Derek a teasing grin -- to which the Beta simply glared in response. "So come on then, little girl." He smirked over at her. "Show me what you got."

Stiles slowly tilted her head, her black orbs still on his blazing reds. "YOU show ME." She replied, her voice low, but still calm, as was her entire exterior.

Charlie arched a brow, a mischievous smile playing at the corners of his lips. And then, without another word, he charged straight for her.

Instinctively, Derek stepped forward, but was stopped short when Ethan quickly grabbed him by the shoulder.

"Stay." Again, the walls trembled slightly, Stiles merely standing in her place while the Alpha stood just inches in front of her.

Charlie snarled loudly as he felt his entire body seize up. "What the hell!?"

Derek's eyes widened again as he watched the Alpha struggle against his invisible binds. And he would be lying right now if he said that he wasn't slightly terrified. Damn amazed. But slightly terrified.

And Aiden's expression wasn't any different from the older Beta's. Although, Ethan really couldn't help grinning like a fool.

"What the fuck did you do to me!? How the fuck are you doing this!?" Charlie roared, looking completely outraged. "You little bitch! I'll tear you to pieces! I'm an Alpha now! If you think that you can just --"

"Be quiet." Stiles ground out, her voice still low and unnervingly calm.

And immediately Charlie did just that. His lips closed, though, of their own accord, much to his fury.

This time, Derek arched a brow and really, he couldn't help smirking a little. He certainly felt amused by these turn of events. And also a little proud. Proud of his mate. Proud of his girl. 'MY girl... Huh. Yeah.' He smiled slightly to himself at that thought.

"Hey, guys? What's with the shaky house?" Scott piped up, appearing in the doorway at that moment. In his right clawed hand, he held Silver by the throat as she struggled pathetically against him. His eyes widened slightly as he noticed then just what was going on. "Oh... Wow." And really, what else could he say?

"Yeah, we know." Ethan grinned. "Isn't it fucking awesome!?"

Scott let out a shaky chuckle. "Uh, yeah..."

"This douche," Aiden pointed his thumb towards a silently glaring Charlie. "Slit Cable's throat and then tried to take us out. So now Stiles is gonna kick his ass... Apparently without even touching him. It's a... Thing. A magic thing." He chirped, smiling brightly.

Scott shuffled further into the room, standing beside his best friend before finally shoving the she wolf roughly onto the floor.

"What did you do to my brother!?" Silver snarled, quickly pulling herself to her feet and lunging for the human.

"Sit." Stiles ground out, her black orbs narrowing over at the she wolf.

Silver felt her legs immediately give out underneath her, causing her to tumble onto her side, with Charlie falling flat onto his ass in the process.

"Well, at least they're well trained." Aiden muttered under his breath, unable to help smirking in amusement when the other siblings glared at him for it.

Scott arched a brow, looking somewhere between surprised and impressed. "Wow. Okay... Uh, Stiles?" He waved a hand carefully in front of her face.

"Yes, Scott?" Stiles replied, her voice calmer, softer as she addressed him. Although, her black orbs were still glaring down on the Alpha siblings.

"Um... What, uh... Whatcha doin'?" Scott asked casually. He was trying to keep himself calm here, because he really didn't know what the fuck was going on.

"They tried to kill us." Stiles answered simply. "And now, I'M going to kill THEM."

"Whoa! Okay. No. No, no." Scott frowned, panicking slightly. "You can't do that."

"Why not?" Stiles asked, finally tearing her black orbs away from them to shoot her best friend a genuinely confused look.

"Because you're not a killer." Derek cut in, slowly shuffling closer to her.

Stiles glanced between Scott and Derek before glancing thoughtfully back to the siblings -- who were both still glaring up at her in utter outrage. "I'm not... The Dorach... I'm..." She mumbled, frowning slightly.

Scott nodded. "That's right. You're not like that, Stiles. You're my sister. And you're the best person I know."

Derek nodded in agreement. "You're not evil."

"They STILL need to be punished." Stiles stated, scowling slightly at her boys.

Scott nodded. "And they will be."

"Yes, they will be, alright." Deucalion drawled out, appearing in the doorway just as Scott had previously.

"What the hell are YOU doing here?" Derek asked, now glaring over at him.

"Yeah, I thought I told you to stay put." Scott added, arching a brow.

Deucalion nodded, letting out a tired sigh. "I know. And I'm sorry, but if you don't kill them both right now, then I will."

Scott narrowed his eyes. "Why? I thought you didn't wanna be an Alpha again."

"He doesn't." Stiles stared at the werewolf, as if trying to read him. "They're yours..." She motioned to Silver and Charlie. "They're your children... They betrayed you..."

"He treat us like Omega dirt! He is NOTHING to us, but a fucking coward! A pathetic excuse for one of our kind!" Silver snarled, glaring straight at her so-called father.

"YOU murdered your own mother!" Deucalion roared, his voice deep and his eyes burning blue. "YOU are disgusting! And you deserve to suffer for eternity! BOTH of you!"

Both Scott and Derek arched their brows, looking slightly surprised by that new piece of information. Although, the twins looked deeply confused, not having even known that their ex-Alpha had ever had any offspring whatsoever. Or any family at all, besides his last pack.

"Suffer?" Stiles perked up considerably at the sound of that word. "Yes," She smiled a rather sinister smile as she turned her blackened orbs back onto the siblings. "I can make them suffer."

"What? No!" Scott gently grabbed her arm, pulling her away from the siblings. "Stiles, snap the fuck out of it!" He barked.

Derek, however, let out a loud snarl and before anyone else could even react, he had already sliced his claws through the she wolf's throat. And okay, yeah, it was a little personal for him -- what with the bitch torturing his mate, almost driving her insane and then almost fucking killing her. And besides, it wasn't as if his soul wasn't already dark enough. He had nothing to lose, he felt. So, yeah. Why the fuck not?

Scott and the twins' eyes widened in shock, Deucalion smirking slightly to himself, while Charlie let out a small whimper, not being able to do much else for the moment. And then there was Stiles, who stared curiously through her black orbs, over at her mate.

"Derek... What the fuck, dude?" Scott scowled slightly. "I wanted to kill the bitch!"

Derek shot the young Alpha a surprised look.

"Oh, come on! The bitch had it coming to her!" Aiden stated, staring down at the lifeless she wolf in utter disgust.

"Yeah." Ethan nodded, a similar expression sprawled across his brow. "She fucking deserved it!"

"Yeah, and now Derek's an Alpha. Again. And THAT worked SO well the first time around." Scott shot them a pointed look.

Derek rolled his eyes. "Stop complaining. If it bothers you THAT much, then you can take it back from me." He stated with a shrug.

"What? How?" Scott asked, looking confused now.

"Oh, it's pretty easy." Ethan stated. "It's the same with the memory thing -- just stick your claws in the back of his neck and drain the power. Oh, but not too much, 'cause then you might kill him."

Scott arched a brow. "Well, thanks for the warning..." He stared thoughtfully for a moment before glancing back up to Derek. "I dunno, though... Maybe it would be good to have the extra power for our pack."

Derek arched a brow, again, looking rather surprised. "I don't wanna be an Alpha again."

"You don't have to be." Scott shrugged casually. "I'll still be the Alpha, if you guys want." To which they all nodded and he smiled gratefully in return.

"And what'd we do about the Alpha runt over here?" Aiden piped up, glaring back towards Charlie, who was glaring back at him in return.

"Kill him." Deucalion said, his voice urging them on. "Let the twins do it. They can become Alphas again, too. More power, remember?" He shot them an assuring grin. "Please, I beg you. I will do anything you ever ask of me after that if you just end his life, because he WILL come back. He WILL make your lives as miserable as his own pathetic existence. And THAT I can promise, through my own personal experience." He glared back over at his so-called son at that last part -- who merely rolled his eyes, completely uncaring and void of emotion.

"As long as Scott is still Alpha, I don't really mind." Aiden piped up, wearing a cocky grin.

Ethan rolled his eyes, but nodded again in agreement with his brother. "Yeah. What he said."

Scott sighed and nodded. "Then it's settled."

Deucalion smirked over at Charlie, who's eyes were now widened in panic as he struggled again against his invisible restraints and failed yet again. "Goodbye, son."


	58. Chapter 58

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Why does Derek smell like an Alpha?"

Cora's eyes widened as soon as they landed on the her brother, who was carrying his unconscious mate. "What happened!? Is she okay!?" She asked instantly, making her way over to him and the others as they all piled out of the elevator.

"Oh, she's MORE than okay." Ethan grinned. "She's just a LITTLE sleepy right now."

"What'd you mean?" John asked, eyeing his daughter with concern. "What happened to her?" He demanded, narrowing his eyes slightly between Derek and Scott.

"Your daughter totally kicked ass tonight! And without even lifting a fricking finger. THAT'S what happened to her." Aiden stated with a proud grin.

"Gimme a minute. I'll be right back." Derek stated simply before walking towards the spiral staircase with the slumbering human still in his arms.

Peter stared after his nephew curiously.

Cora noticed her uncle's expression and quickly caught on, subtly inhaling her brother's lingering scent left behind him. "Why does Derek smell like an Alpha?" She narrowed her eyes over at the True Alpha.

"Yeah. You two, too." Isaac piped up as he shuffled over to the twins and took in a quick sniff of their scent.

"Well, long story short: Ethan and Aiden did their freaky merge thing and snapped Cable's neck. Charlie slit Cable's throat before I could. Stiles went all blacks eyes and murderous intent for a minutes. Derek and I talked her out of it. So then, Derek killed Silver without a second thought -- which, okay, I kinda understand and suppose I can get over." Scott rolled his eyes, yet continued with his explanation. "And then Ethan and Aiden killed Charlie. Stiles passed out and now, here we all are again." He concluded with a lazy shrug before stalking over to the couch and plopping down beside his girlfriend.

"Um, what the fuck?" Lydia asked, looking somewhere between confused and amazed. "So, now this pack has four Alphas? What the hell? How does that even work?" And now she just looked confused.

"Well, I had a whole pack of Alphas." Deucalion replied with a shrug.

"True." Aiden nodded. "It doesn't really matter who or what you are. If you're pack, then you're pack. That's all there is to it." He concluded with a grin.

"Yeah." Ethan agreed. "Besides, we already agreed that Scott's still our Alpha."

Lydia simply nodded in acknowledgement.

"And there were also many humans in our family." Peter reminded with a pointed look.

"Well, it can't hurt to have the extra power." Chris piped up.

"Exactly." Scott nodded.

"Speaking of power --" Deaton piped up, glancing over to the True Alpha. "What exactly happened to Stiles tonight?"

"We were hoping YOU could tell US." Derek said as he slowly sauntered back down the spiral staircase, his now free arms folded over his chest.

"Yeah," Scott nodded, looking somewhere between freaked out and utterly confused. "I knew Stiles could astral project and talk to dead people, but what happened tonight was kinda... Scary... Awesome... But still... Scary."

Allison frowned, looking slightly concerned. "But she's still okay -- right?" She asked, glancing between them expectantly.

"She's fine. I'd know if she wasn't." Derek confirmed with a nod.

Allison nodded in acknowledgement, even managing a small, but relieved smile.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry -- c-can we just back up for second here?" John piped up, looking rather troubled and deeply confused. He continued when the others all turned their gazes onto him. "Stiles can talk to dead people... Seriously?" He shot his daughter's best friend a clearly disbelieving look.

"Uh... Yeah?" Scott smiled sheepishly.

"God, McCall, you have such a stupid, fat mouth. Stiles is going to have your furry head." Lydia whispered under her breath, knowing only the werewolves would hear her -- which they did.

Scott shot the redhead a brief glare, whereas the other wolves -- even Derek -- smirked slightly in amusement to themselves.

John just looked bewildered by this point, and still completely confused. And now, also kind of a little terrified. "Oh... 'Kay... And, uh, how long has this been going on, exactly?" He arched a brow, narrowing his eyes slightly at the young werewolf.

"Only about a week or so." Derek spoke up, thankfully coming to the younger Alpha's rescue. "Don't be angry with her." He added, noticing the man's annoyed frown. "She didn't wanna worry you."

John let out a breathy chuckle, shaking his head slightly. "Well, that doesn't matter, 'cause I worry about her all the time."

Derek simply nodded, shooting the Sheriff an understanding look.

"And this astral projection thing -- what's that?" John asked, now thankfully, looking more curious than alarmed.

"The ability to transport one's spirit self into the realm of the afterlife." Peter piped up, as smoothly as ever. "A very rare and special gift, indeed." He added with a fond grin.

Derek rolled his eyes at that.

"Is it dangerous?" John asked, looking a little more concerned again.

"Not really." Deaton said. "The only real danger is if Stiles spirit was to wander too far from her body, then she may end up becoming lost. And that DOES leave her body vulnerable to any harmful spirits."

"You mean, like possession? Like in 'The Exorcist'? Or 'Insidious'?" John asked, his eyes widened slightly, his expression slightly alarmed by that thought.

"Yes, but even then, there's always still hope for Stiles to find her way back." Deaton explained, smiling slightly. "And if Stiles is anything like her mother; then something like that won't even be a problem for her. Already, Stiles has shown an impressive amount of self-control. I don't think you have anything to worry about there."

John let out a little, relieved sigh and nodded, slowly forcing himself to calm down before he had a God damn heart attack. "Well," He chuckled quietly, shaking his head again. "Stiles is a lot like her mother, THAT'S for sure. She's stubborn like her, for one thing." He rolled his eyes at that, but couldn't help smiling fondly to himself.

Scott grinned widely at that. "She's sarcastic, too. I wonder where she gets THAT from." He noted, shooting the Sheriff a pointed look.

John merely rolled his eyes at that. "What you and Stiles think is me being sarcastic, is actually me telling you both how it really is."

Scott glared briefly, then smirking smugly. "See? Sarcasm. That was sarcastic."

"It really wasn't." John shot him an "I'm serious" look, too which the werewolf proceeded to pout, like an immature, little pup'.

"So, it's over now -- right?" Isaac finally asked, glancing between the group curiously.

Derek nodded. "Yeah."

"Yeah." Aiden scoffed loudly. "At least, until the next Hell beast, out for blood arrives in town." He rolled his eyes, his tone dripping with bitter sarcasm.

"He's not wrong." Lydia pointed out with a loud and tired sigh. "So, who wants pizza!?" She chirped brightly, glancing eagerly around the group.

"Yes, God, I am starving!" Cora whined dramatically.

"Yeah, I could eat." Ethan nodded his agreement. "A lot."

"I'm in." Isaac also nodded.

"Not us. We've got a date." Scott piped up, grinning almost wickedly over at his girlfriend.

Allison rolled her eyes, but couldn't help smirking. "Yeah, we're good. But thanks."

"And I've also got a date." Peter chirped, smirking smugly.

"What!?" Cora snapped, looking completely surprised.

Derek arched a brow. "With who?" He asked, staring curiously at his uncle.

Lydia snorted loudly and shamelessly. "Yeah. Who's desperate enough to wanna go out with YOU?"

Peter turned to the redhead, arching a brow and pretending to look upset. "Y'know, that really hurts my feelings."

Lydia merely rolled her eyes, clearly not believing a word coming out of his "creepy" mouth -- as both she and Stiles liked to say, often. 'Like the creepy bastard even HAS emotions. Ha! Good one. Seriously. That's the funniest thing I've heard all year.' She bit her cheek at that thought to keep herself from bursting out laughing.

"Anyway, it's none of your business." Peter stated snootily. "ANY of yours." He added, shooting them all a pointed look before sauntering towards the elevator, leaving without another word.

"Huh... He didn't seem too torn up about you slicing up his ex-girlfriend's throat." Scott noted casually, staring curiously after the werewolf who had turned him.

Derek shrugged lazily. "Like he ever even cared about Silver. Or anyone, ever, for that matter." He scoffed with a roll of his eyes.

Scott nodded, a thoughtful look on his face as he still stared after his "werewolf daddy" -- as Stiles had once put it, much to his dismay.

"Say, Derek," John turned to the werewolf, who stared curiously back at him. "Would it be okay if I parked myself on your couch again tonight?" He asked sheepishly. He never really liked to ask people for, well, anything. But this was for his daughter, not for him. And only then, would he ever sacrifice his pride. "It's just, uh, I don't really figure moving Stiles is best right now, and I don't really wanna leave her, neither. I mean, I trust you with her, but I just really need to be close to her right now."

Derek looked rather surprised for a few moments, in fact, so did most of the others. "Uh, yeah, it's fine." He nodded, shaking himself quickly out of his stupor. "And I understand."

John nodded, shooting the werewolf a grateful smile. "Great. Thanks, Derek."


	59. Chapter 59

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You're not the person that I thought you were, Derek Hale."

"Stiles..."

Stiles was warm. She was incredibly warm.

"Stiles..."

Stiles felt safe. And she hadn't felt this way since her mother had been harshly ripped out of her life.

"Stiles... Seriously, girly..."

And if this was a dream, then Stiles never wanted to wake up. Ever.

"Hey! Stop ignoring me!"

And if Stiles was awake right now, she knew she would have been smirking smugly at the annoyed tone of the demon's voice.

"You can wake up now... You rude little, bitch..."

No. No waking up. Not ever, she thought.

Then came the sound of Cooter's amused sounding laugh. "O-kaay." He said in a sing-song voice, clearly teasing his charge. "But your wolfboy's waiting for ya..." And then, the voice was gone, drifted from her mind, finally leaving her along inside her head... For now, anyway.

'Derek!?' Stiles perked up considerably at that piece of information. And damn, she must have already been waking up without even realising, because she could hear herself saying sourwolf's name before she heard sourwolf saying her name in return.

"Stiles?"

Stiles frowned -- he sounded worried. Why did he sound worried? She then finally and slowly cracked her eyes open, already grateful for the dim lighting in the small room. Her fuzzy vision slowly cleared as it adjusted to the light, her gaze then settling on a pair of familiar, but slightly concerned, green-blue orbs.

Derek felt his entire body relax a little, feeling relieved to see her finally awake. "Are you okay?" He asked, looking rather anxiously. He had listened to Deaton's every word. But he still wasn't convinced until she had told him herself.

Stiles gave a small nod, even shooting him a reassuring smile. She then glanced around her surroundings as she slowly sat up on the rather large bed. "Is this your room?" She glanced curiously back to him.

Derek arched a brow, shooting her an odd look. He didn't expect her to be asking such random questions, especially not after all the shit that had gone down tonight. Nevertheless, he answered her anyway with a simple nod.

Stiles glanced around the room -- it was simple, but clean and tidy and not really all that lived in. "I DID wonder where you were sleeping after you'd moved your bed from downstairs." She noted, though, mostly to herself.

"Stiles," Derek shot her a serious look. "What happened? Do you remember anything?"

Stiles turned back to him and nodded. "Yeah. Pretty much everything. And... I'm sorry." She smiled sheepishly when he arched a brow at her. "I guess I lost control for a second there... But they pissed me off."

And Derek smiled at that, even if he didn't want to. He was still slightly concerned here. Or at least, he was trying to be. "It's fine. You don't have to apologise. They would have killed us." He added pointedly, as if trying to make her feel better.

Stiles smiled lightly. "Uh, yeah... Are they..." She frowned, suddenly sensing something odd; new. She eyed him curiously for a moment before speaking again. "You're different."

Derek frowned, looking slightly confused now. "What'd you mean?"

"I don't know." Stiles continued to stare at him. "I just... It's like I can sense... Something..."

And then it clicked for the werewolf, who smiled then, his eyes flashing bright red for the briefest of moments.

Stiles gasped quietly, now looking somewhere between surprised and shocked. "Your eyes..." She whispered. "Your an Alpha."

Derek nodded. "The twins are now, too."

"Huh. Okay..." Stiles arched a brow. "The last thing I remember Scott yelling at me." She frowned in annoyance at that.

Derek chuckled lightly. "Well, you WERE trying to kill a bunch of werewolves."

Stiles rolled her eyes, but couldn't help smirking. "Yeah, well, like I said; they pissed me off." She state in a dismissive tone.

Derek merely grinned.

"Where's my dad?" Stiles asked, her eyes filling slightly with concern.

Derek offered a reassuring smile. "Downstairs, crashed on the couch about an hour ago. He didn't wanna leave you." He explained simply.

Stiles nodded, relaxing herself when the panic was over. "But he's okay -- right?"

Derek nodded. "He's fine. A little confused... Bewildered, maybe. But he's fine."

"You told him, huh?" Stiles asked, looking rather bummed out.

Derek sighed and nodded. "Yeah. We kinda had to when he saw you."

Again, Stiles nodded in acknowledgement before sighing tiredly and leaning back against the wooden headboard. "Where's everyone else?" She asked curiously, though, mainly to fill the silence. She hated silence.

"Most of them left to grab some food a little while ago." Derek explained with a shrug.

"You're not hungry?" Stiles asked, wearing a slight frown. "Seriously, I don't think I've ever seen you eat... Anything. Well, except for on our date. But that doesn't count, 'cause you're the one who invited me out, so you were obliged to eat."

"I eat." Derek gave another lazy shrug.

"But not like, cute bunnies and stuff -- right?" And really, Stiles couldn't help teasing a little. Even if she was being kind of serious, too.

Derek rolled his eyes at that, but there was still a hint of a smile there, threatening to break through. "No."

Stiles grinned. "Well, what's your favourite food?"

Derek let out a breathy chuckle. "That's such a lame question." He shot her a teasing smirk, to which she glared back in return. He rolled his eyes, deciding to answer anyway. Well, more like deciding that he didn't feel like having her pester the answer out of him. Like he knew she would undoubtedly do. "Fine..." He sighed, defeated. "Don't laugh, but... I kinda love chocolate-chip pancakes..." He then studied her cautiously for a reaction.

Stiles arched a brow. "I'm talking about proper food, dude. That's just dessert."

"Yeah, I know, but... I could probably live off of them, to be honest." Derek concluded with casual shrug.

Stiles stared blankly at him for a few moments, her entire expression then suddenly lighting up. "So, the sour wolf has a sweet tooth, huh?" She shot him a cheeky grin, her eyes glinting with mischief.

Derek merely rolled his eyes, though, he couldn't help smirking slightly.

"Y'know," Stiles narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "You're not the person that I thought you were, Derek Hale." She mocked, shooting him another teasing grin.

Derek arched a brow, a similar smirk growing slowly across his own lips. "Oh, yeah?" He slowly leaned closer, a hand reaching up and gently resting at the back of her neck as his forehead rested lightly against her own.

"Yeah." Stiles scoffed quietly, her eyes still narrowed to distract her from her sudden increase in heart rate. He was so fricking close. And Stiles didn't think she would ever get over the way she felt whenever he was so close. Especially this kind of close.

Derek's smirk widened slightly as he leaned forward, leaving a small, but chaste kiss against her mouth. "How so?" He mumbled against her lips, then leaving another couple of kisses there before slowly ghosting a trail along her jaw.

"Um, well," Stiles muttered, clearly distracted. Her eyes fluttered briefly as she forced herself to stay focussed, to stop acting like such a fricking virgin. "You're a little horndog, for one thing... Didn't really expect THAT..." She managed to get out. And really, she thought she deserved a pat on the back for that little success. Her hands then began to move of their own accord as they slowly slid up his (rock hard, like seriously, how the fuck?) stomach to rest against his even firmer (and seriously broad, like a fricking freight train) chest. And wow, she even swore she could feel his heart beating almost as wildly as her own under her right hand.

And oblivious (or maybe not, as far as werewolves senses go, anyway) Derek huffed out a small laugh against her left cheek, clearly amused now.

And really, Stiles thought that was a little unfair, seeing as how fricking horny she felt right now. And really, she wanted to glare, she did. But how the hell was she supposed to do anything except for pant like a little bitch when she suddenly felt his hands sliding purposefully down her sides, then pausing to give her little squeezes as he went along.

Derek left another trail of kisses along her jaw, leading all the way back until his lips were back over hers. He slid his hands slowly around to her ribcage, then slowly inching up, but never daring to go that extra further. He leaned away with a small groan, his nostrils flaring slightly, his eyes fluttering. "Again; you smell SO fucking good." He'd said, hearing his own voice raspy and low now. 'So pure. So warm. So sweet. Mine. ALL fucking mine.' And yeah, he thought that would probably have been a not-so good idea to say all of those things... At least, not right now. Not yet...

However, Stiles knew what he really meant. She noticed his nose twitching and while she was slightly mortified that he could smell her right now, she was also actually a little turned on by that. By the look on his face right now. One she had never seen before.

The wolf whined slightly deep within as Derek noticed the look of embarrassment on his mate's face. He leaned forward, capturing her lips again. He smiled against her mouth, his plan to distract her working like a charm. After a few moments of ravishing her mouth with his own, he felt her arms slip around his neck, pulling him closer. He placed an arm beside her, propping himself up as his upper body hovered closely over hers. And then after a few more moments, he felt one of her hands slowly slip back down, carefully beginning to venture down. He then felt his heart race even faster when her fingertips lightly trailed over the flesh just under the bottom of his shirt. And then, what little self-control he felt he had in the first place, he now felt slowly slipping away from him, bit by bit. His stomach muscles tightened automatically as he felt her hand slowly creeping further under his shirt, her fingernails scratching lightly across his skin.

Stiles pulled her lips from his with a sigh, her eyes barely open as he rested his forehead against her own again. "Y'know, I don't think I've ever really appreciated just how amazing your body is..." She mumbled -- well, it came out as more of a babble. "Like, seriously, amazing." And now she was blushing like a madwoman again. Why couldn't she just be confidant and spontaneous? Like Lydia or even Allison. 'Ugh. It's SO not fair... And now he's giving me a weird look... Great. Just great. He probably thinks I'm an idiot. A stupid, virgin idiot.'

Derek arched a brow, looking somewhat taken aback for a few seconds. He then quickly composed himself -- ignoring the gutter-belonging thoughts stirring in his mind right now, because sadly, he couldn't get rid of those -- an amused smirk then forming across his lips before he could really stop himself. Not that he wanted to. "Well," He began, and he really did try not to sound as smug as he felt right now. "I wish I could say the same about you." He chirped, still unable to help smirking at her. He chuckled quietly when she quickly looked away from him out of embarrassment.

Stiles bit her bottom lip, staring thoughtfully at her hand still under his shirt. 'Okay... I can do this... Yeah...' She retracted both her hands before giving herself time to start over-thinking things again; mainly her decision here. 'Oh, God. What the hell am I even doing!?' She ignored the stupid, little voice nagging her from the back of her mind and ignored the confused look on the werewolf's face when she lightly shoved against his chest to move him. She sat up quickly and without a second thought, she reached down for her own overly large t-shirt, pulling it up over her head and discarding it on the floor beside the bed.

"Stiles," Derek's eyes widened slightly. He didn't know whether to lean forward or back away. Though, he was certain of what he WANTED to do. His hands flinched slightly, as if they were just itching to reach out and touch her. "What..." He gulped silently, stopping his eyes before they trailed down to her completely naked torso. "What're you doing?" He croaked, barely just managing to maintain her gaze by now. 'Why is she trying to kill me?' He silently whined.

"Granting your wish." And Stiles thought she must have been on auto pilot or something right now, because she suddenly felt a wave of confidants washing over her. And okay, MAYBE that had something to do with the rather flustered Alpha sitting right in front of her right now.

"Stiles,"

"Shut up." Stiles mumbled out through a faint smile as she slowly crept forward.

"Stiles," Derek scowled slightly, trying to sound stern, but failing miserably. For now, he was frozen in his place, and a little unsure of what to do. "Your father's downstairs." He reminded her, and really, it was just a pathetic attempt. He thought that even she probably knew that.

Stiles rolled her eyes. "I told you," She muttered, slowly crawling into his lap, her arms loosely hung around his neck. She smirked slightly as she felt his entire body tense underneath her. "I don't listen to anybody." She leaned forward, pressing a light, teasing kiss to his lips. "Not even YOU, sourwolf."


	60. Chapter 60

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Don't you wanna see how deep I go?"

"I seriously hate you for this. Like, seriously, HATE you for this." Aiden grumbled. He crossed his arms over his chest in annoyance, glaring between his Alpha and his ex-Alpha.

Both Ethan and Scott rolled their eyes at the silly, pouting werewolf. "What'd you want me to do?" Scott scalded him. "Move him in with one of the girls instead? Or better yet; my mother. Pff! I don't fucking think so." He turned to the ex-Alpha briefly. "No offence."

Deucalion held up a hand. "It's fine. I understand."

"Uh, how about throwing him out onto the cold, hard curb? Like he deserves." Aiden seethed. "Or better yet; kill him." He added, shooting the ex-Alpha a dark look.

"No." Scott frowned. "Derek's mom saw something in him. He's a man of peace at heart -- isn't that right?" He turned back to the ex-Alpha, arching a pointed brow.

Again, Deucalion nodded, even smiling a little.

"Besides," Scott went on, turning back to the angry Alpha twin. "He helped us out tonight. And he didn't have to."

Aiden scoffed. "Uh, yes. Yes, he did." He said, wearing a "duh" look. "Because he wants to join our pack -- that's why." He reminded with another glare.

"I know." Scott nodded, then turning to the ex-Alpha again. "And if you're serious about that, then you're going to have to earn the trust of my entire pack, as well as mine, before I even consider letting you join us."

Deucalion bowed his head in respect to the young Alpha as he responded. "And I will." He said, trying to sound his utmost sincerest. "And really, Scott," He offered a small, but clearly grateful smile. "I DO appreciate your mercy... Especially after all the things I've done to you... And your pack."

Scott gave the ex-Alpha a hard stare before nodding in acknowledgement. "Okay then. It's settled."

"Fine." Aiden grumbled out through slightly gritted teeth. "But I STLL hate you."

Scott merely rolled his eyes. Yet, he also couldn't help smirking a little in amusement.

"Ignore the idiot." Ethan piped up, rolling his eyes at his brother -- who shifted his glare onto him in return. "It's fine, Scott."

Scott nodded, shooting the softer twin a grateful smile. "Now, if you guys don't mind; I have a date." He grinned excitedly. "Later, dudes." He chirped, waving them all off without a second glance, sauntering across the street and hopping back onto his dirt motorcycle.

"Don't worry, boys, you won't even know I'm there." Deucalion said, shooting them a small, slightly sheepish smile.

And this time, both twins turned to glare over at their ex-Alpha...

...Derek let out a frustrated growl as he grabbed his mate by her bare waist. He then quickly flipped her over -- secretly enjoying the surprised, little squeal that escaped her -- so that he was hovering over her once again. "Why are you trying to torture me?" He grumbled, glaring only half-heartedly down at her. And really, he was only glaring at her to keep his eyes from wandering downwards. Again. Ugh.

Surprise briefly flashed over Stiles' face, her lips then slowly curling up into a small, rather shy smile. "I wasn't aware of that." She mumbled back, mentally cursing herself when she felt her cheeks heat up. In fact, she was pretty much flushed from the chest upwards right now.

Derek narrowed his eyes slightly further. "Oh, really?" He arched a brow, his gaze then seemingly searching for something in her own. A little bit of surprise then flitted across his features, his gaze then turning slightly curious instead.

And now, Stiles deemed herself pretty good at reading people. Or at least, the people she knew well. And though Derek had not always been one of those who were easy for her to read, she could see it in his face right now. "I know I'm not exactly the prettiest girl around," And though her voice wavered slightly, her throat aching, she still somehow managed to say what she wanted to say. Although, she was no longer able to look at him as she continued. "I'm not Lydia or Allison, or even Cora..." She trailed off with a nervous chuckle. "Sorry. I'm just, I'm being an idiot."

"Stiles,"

And now he was frowning at her. He even looked slightly irritated.

'Great. Just... Just great.' Stiles thought somewhat bitterly. 'Way to ruin the moment, Stilinski.' And while he was frowning at her, she was also now scalding herself, visibly, but of course, unaware of that. Just as she was unaware of pretty much everything when lost deep in her crazy, stupid thoughts.

"Stiles," Derek then leaned closer and simply hoped for the best on the whole issue of his self-control. He would have thought twice about that any other time, but he really didn't like the look on her face right now. It was one he never wanted to see on her. One he had never seen until now. And he knew that it was because of him. It was his fault. Stiles had always been so carefree and easy-going and confidant about literally everything in her life. Until now.

"It's fine. Forget I said anything." Stiles huffed lightly, her eyes still searching to look at anything, but him. And that was really, REALLY difficult when he was practically laying on top of her right now.

"I can't do that." Derek's frown deepened as he rested his forehead lightly against her own. He brought up a hand -- his other supporting most of his weight over her -- and slowly curled his fingers under her chin, finally making her look up at him. He leaned further -- ignoring the feel of her bare chest pressed against his own as best he could (and also totally NOT annoyed about the fact that he still had his own God damn shirt on) -- and pressed his lips against her own.

"And since when do you talk about feelings?" Stiles teased lightly, trying to ignore her racing heart.

Derek frowned again (totally NOT what she was going for, sadly) as he pressed another couple of kisses to her lips before actually responding. "Since I found out that you're not really just the pretty, smart-mouthed, little punk that you make yourself out to be." He said, his tone as serious as his expression. "You sell yourself too damn short, Stilinski. You're deeper than any of that. I was an asshole, but... I can see that now." He mumbled, pressing yet another couple of kisses to her lips.

Stiles stared back up at him for a few moments, slightly taken aback by his words. His many words. And since when did he start talking so much, anyway? And for once, Stiles was slightly speechless. What could she even say right now? She decided not to say anything, knowing she would probably only mess her words up anyway. Instead, she slowly slinked her arms around his neck and pulled him down for another kiss. Though, this time, she pressed her lips a little harder against his, picking her pace up a little as she pulled him impossibly close to her.

Derek hummed quietly against her mouth in approval, his free hand sliding down her bare waist before resting over her thigh. Along with hers, he felt his heart jack-hammering against the inside of his chest. And for a few moments, he allowed himself to lose a little of that control he had always wound up so tightly, and for so long now. He gave her thigh a gentle squeeze, growling quietly at the back of his throat when she sighed deeply against his assaulting mouth.

And something finally slipped from Stiles, she felt herself let go, though, only a little. But it was enough to make her slip her hands from around his neck and drift quickly down his torso. She slipped one hand under his shirt, raking her fingernails lightly over his lower stomach and grinned against his lips as she felt his entire body shudder from the friction, the light rumble of a growl only causing his to shudder even more. Then, with her other hand, she tugged gently at the stupid piece of material. And, why the hell was he still wearing his shirt again? She barely pulled her lips from his, just enough to mutter: "Off." before pressing her mouth firmly back up to his.

"Stiles," Derek mumbled out, reluctantly pulling his lips from hers to shot her that infamous frown of his.

"It's okay, I just," Stiles hesitated for a brief moment there, but thankfully managed to stick to her new found confidence. "I just wanna feel you..." She whispered, feeling her cheeks burn all the more. And really, she hadn't expected that to work. She hadn't expected him to simply nod and then actually fucking take of his shirt. Because that's exactly what he did next.

Derek understood what she meant: No sex. Just touching. And the werewolf really didn't know if he had THAT much self-control. But for her, he would certainly give it a try, at least. He sat up, leaning back on his heels and kneeling on his bed as he easily lifted his shirt over his head before tossing it aside somewhere. Anywhere, he wasn't really paying much attention to anything else right now.

And now Stiles was staring up at him -- well, his absolutely, perfect, carved by God himself, glorious,(totally) washboard abs -- well, she was actually pretty sure she was just eye-fucking the werewolf in front of her right now. And damn, it REALLY fair, because, hello, werewolf, pretty much made of self-control issues, here. And then there was Stiles, who felt like if she moved a muscle right now, she would probably just throw herself at him. MAYBE not such a good idea. 'Or is it? ...No, Stiles.' She mentally scalded herself. 'You are not going to be [b]that[/b] girl. You are NOT that easy... Even if he totally is the most perfect creature in the universe ever... Ever, ever... Ugh.'

And Derek, of course, with his stupid werewolf senses, could hear her pulse pick up, a lot. And really, he couldn't help smirking slightly. Sure, she had seen him without a shirt on before, well, plenty of times, in fact, but until now, he had never seen her look at him the way she was looking at him right now; with a kind of animalistic hunger that he knew of himself all too well. And it really fucking loved that look on her. In fact, he was only playing smug so that he would quite literally just throw himself at her right now. "Like what you see?" He chimed with a small grin, seemingly snapping her out of her little stupor.

Stiles eyes snapped back up to his, her cheeks flushing even more, if that was even fricking possible, which apparently, it was. She barely managed a bashful nod before even managing to speak. Actual words, too. "I severely reinforce my earlier statement... About me not appreciating..." She trailed off in a mumble, her eyes slowly drifting back down to the defined muscles across, literally every part of his body... Well, the parts she could see, anyway. 'Ugh!'

Derek chuckled quietly as he slowly moved forward, until his chest was barely an inch from her own, his face over hers, too. He took in her flushed cheeks, slightly swollen lips and blown out pupils with a small grin across his lips before pressing them to her own again. He moved his lips over hers for a few more moments, catching the scent of her arousal once again, he then moved his kisses across the bottom of her jaw with a low growl rumbling quietly at the back of his throat. He trailed his lips across her cheek, nipping gently at her earlobe before trailing more kisses down the base of her neck.

Stiles tilted her head, baring her neck to the werewolf and shivering lightly at the pleased, little groan he offered. As she felt his mouth gently sucking and nipping his way all across her neck, she also felt his hands gently press up into her ribcage. Her back arched automatically, pressing her bare chest finally to his own as she let out a soft gasp at the contact.

Derek bit back a whimper at the feeling of her hardened nipples pressing against his chest, leaving his skin riddled with goosepimples.

Stiles turned her head back to face him, a small frown settled on her face. She could sense his hesitation and that REALLY did NOT work for her. Not one little bit. "Derek," She waited until his eyes opened and he was glancing intensely down at her. "You can..." She gulped silently, trying to ignore her nerves. "You can touch me."

Derek let out a little sigh, leaning forward and resting his forehead against her own once more. He quickly collect what little control he felt he had left before nodding lightly. "Just..." And now he looked slightly concerned -- which also really didn't work for Stiles. "Just stop me if I... If I --"

"Shut up." Stiles scoffed lightly, though, looking slightly amused now. "If you really wanted to rip my throat out, you would have done it by now." She grinned when he only rolled his eyes. "What I meant is;" She continued. "I trust you."

Derek stared at her for a few moments, as though he were searching for something. And whatever it was, he must have found, because he nodded then, the corners of his lips even tugging slightly upwards.

Stiles shot him a small smile. She reached for one of his hands still planted over her ribs and placed it over her right breast instead.

"Stiles,"

"This is only the first layer." Stiles' smile widened slightly as the Alpha's eyes fluttered closed and another low growl rumbled deep within his own chest. And really, didn't he know by now? Stiles never listened to anyone. "Don't you wanna see how deep I go?"


	61. Chapter 61

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I know you love to talk, Stiles."

Stiles now understood why touching was such an important thing for werewolves as she felt this werewolf's large, warm hands gently cupping both her breasts. She let out a soft sigh as the contact of his rough skin on hers, her entire body erupting with tiny goosepimples. Her eyes fluttered rapidly as he buried his nose in the crook of her neck and began to suck and nip gently at the flesh there. Her back arched when she suddenly felt his hands squeeze gently at her breasts and then gasped breathlessly as she felt his fingers gently tugging at her hardened nipples. "Fuck, Derek..."

Derek paused the assault on her neck at the sound of her breathless moan with a low growl rumbling through his chest. He quickly managed to compose himself, pulling his head up finally so that he could look at her. And what a sight she was -- pupils blown wide, eyes barely open, hair darted out in all different directions, cheeks and chest flushed, all because of him. He leaned forward, unable to take it any longer and closed his mouth over hers.

Stiles moaned quietly as he kissed her rather hungrily now, her arms slipping around his neck and pulling him as close as possible; all of him. Without thinking, she grabbed his waist with her legs and closed any space left between them. She hooked her ankles around his ass, digging her heels into the incredibly firm flesh and gasped against his lips when she felt the obvious and rather large bulge in his pants.

Derek groaned quietly as his felt his hips automatically jerk forward. "Stiles," He panted against her lips for a couple of seconds, catching his breath before leaning forward and placing his mouth back onto her neck, any part of the expanse of flesh he could reach. His heart raced even harder, aching his chest now as he lowered a slow trail of open-mouthed kisses down her chest and between the valley of her soft, fleshy mounds. And as his fingers continued to tease her ever hardening buds, he could hear that voice nagging him at the back of his mind; his human voice, telling him to stop, or to slow the fuck down, at least. And then there was that other voice, the louder, demanding voice; his wolf voice, telling him to keep fucking going and to not stop until his mate was screaming his name at the top of her lungs as pounded into her until she forgot her own name -- Derek snapped out of the desperate thoughts streaming through his mind, pulling his lips away from her torso and back to her lips instead. He gave her breasts another gently squeeze, enjoying the feel of their warm and softness against his now sweaty palms (not that she seemed to mind -- which REALLY didn't help the problem going on in his pants right now, because, fuck, did his dick ache to shit right now! Ugh!)

Stiles arched her back purposefully this time, feeling his hard flesh smother across her softness and shivered violently. She tightened her grip on his waist, her thighs tensing as hard as possibly and she probably should have been ashamed at the rather wanton whining sound that she made then, but she really wasn't. She could even think straight right now, let alone feel other emotions that didn't include being totally horny and fucking boiling. Like, seriously, when the H-E-double-hockey-sticks did it become like a fricking oven in this God damn room!?

Derek let out another low growl, the sound vibrating passed his lips and against her own as he kissed her a little harder and faster, his hands gently squeezing her breast, his fingers still playing with her nipples. He kissed his way across the bottom of her jaw until he reached the spot under her ear and then clamped his mouth over it, his blunt human teeth digging gently into the soft, but supple flesh. And of course, he could help pulling back to admire his work for a moment before moving back down to her chest. He decided to just go for it, trusting himself; trusting the control he thought he had and gently sucked one of her hardened, rosy buds into his mouth.

Stiles sucked in a sharp breath, revelling the odd, but wonderful feeling of his tongue flickering over her pimpled flesh. "Fuck, Derek... That's..." She bit down hard on her bottom lip to keep herself from mumbling like a complete idiot.

Derek pulled away with a low grumbling snarl, barely audible. "What? What is it, Stiles?" He whispered harshly, his lips hovering barely an inch over her chest and his shoulders heaving slightly as he tried to control his breathing. "I know you love to talk, Stiles. So talk." He rasped before dipping his head back down, this time, his tongue lavishing her other breast with his full attention as his hand gently massaged the other.

"Holy shit... Feels so good... Don't stop... Fuck... Don't EVER stop..." Stiles whispered breathlessly. She slipped her hands up his chest, quickly around his neck and up into his hair, lacing her fingers through the silky, black tufts and tugging gently at them.

If werewolves did indeed purr, then that was probably what Derek was actually doing. He felt her thighs tighten around his waist before she instinctively raising her hips towards his. And before he could really stop himself, he was gently rocking back into her. He groaned loudly against her breast pulled away quickly raising his head and kissing her deeply. He cupped both her breasts and gave them a few gentle squeezes, enjoying her every, little moan and gasp as the two of them slowly moved against one another.

Stiles dropped her hands back to his shoulders, squeezing the hard muscle there and sighed softly into the kiss. She then wrapped her arms around his neck, holding him tightly as she began to feel that familiar (because, obviously, she touched herself, sometimes -- she WAS a constantly horny 17 year old, after all) bubbly sensation forming at the pit of her stomach. She pulled her lips from his with a rather high-pitched gasp, her eyes slightly widened. "Fuck... Fuck, y-yes..." She stammered breathlessly, biting down hard on her bottom lip.

"F-fuck, n-no..." Derek mumbled. His hands grabbing her hips and holding them gently, but firmly in place. "Stop, stop..." He whispered, his forehead resting against her shoulder as he tried to catch his breath (and MAYBE just take a second to calm the fuck down here).

"D-Derek?" Stiles mumbled, panting heavily as she turned her head to face him looking slightly dazed, and disappointed. "What's wrong?" She frowned slightly after a few seconds, when the fog had finally lifted from her hazy brain.

"We have stop." Derek quickly composed himself, though, still panting slightly as he lifted his head back up to face her.

"Why?" Stiles looked slightly disappointed, hurt, even, and then slightly mortified in the space of a few seconds. "Did I... Did I do something --"

"No." Derek's voice strained slightly as he bit back a small whine. "God, no." He whispered, pressing a quick, but sweet kiss to her lips.

And now Stiles was just confused. "Then," She frowned, showing that confusion clearly over her ever-expression-filled features. "Then, what?" She asked, her voice quiet and slightly timid, though, mostly through lack of fricking breath.

Derek groaned quietly, a slightly frustrated look on his face. Why did she have to make him say it? Fuck it, he thought. "If we don't stop, I'm gonna cum in my pants." He blurted out. "And I haven't done that since I was 13. So, no, thank you." And now he could feel his cheeks flush even more than they already were.

Stiles stared blankly back up at him for a few seconds before erupting into a small fit of chuckles.

Derek scowled back down at her. 'Huh. I forgot what it feels like to have a girl you like laugh in your face... It, uh... It STILL sucks...'

Stiles quickly composed herself. "Oh, my God. I'm sorry. I, uh, I just, I never thought I'd hear you say something... Like that..." She mumbled, nibbling at her bottom lip.

Derek rolled his eyes, the corners of his lips twitching slightly. "Stiles," He leaned closer, his face hovering over hers, his mouth slowly inching closing back to her own. "Stop talking..."

"...Well, Stiles, I gotta say; I am impressed. I didn't think you had it in you." Lydia turned away from the racks of many, many, beautiful dresses and grinned approvingly at the oldest girl.

Stiles blushed heavily. And why the hell did she decide to say anything again? Oh, yeah -- because the redhead threatened her with actual bodily harm if she didn't. Ugh.

Allison chuckled at her slightly embarrassed expression. "Did you two, um, y'know?" She asked, barely able to hold in her excitement.

Stiles' blush deepened, if that was even fricking possible. "No." She mumbled. "He was the perfect gentleman." She added a little snootily.

Lydia nodded, now wearing a grin. "So, you showed him your tits first, huh? Good girl. You don't wanna seem too easy. Even if Derek's kind of a hunk."

Stiles arched a brow, looking somewhere between surprised and amused. "I thought you hated him." She stated pointedly.

"I don't hate him. I just think he could work on his social skills a little." Lydia rolled her eyes. "It's Peter I can't stand." She added with a sickly sweet smile.

Stiles chuckled lightly and nodded. "Yeah. No arguments there. Even his own family can't stand him."

Lydia smirked. "Besides, Derek's not so bad... Lately, anyway."

Stiles arched a brow, looking slightly confused. "What'd you mean?"

Lydia scoffed lightly as she turned back to sift through the store's racks of dresses. "Please. Like you haven't noticed. Like the entire pack hasn't noticed."

"Yeah." Allison piped up, nodding in agreement with the redhead. "He's, uh, well, he's a lot more, uh, approachable, I guess we could say."

Lydia arched a brow over her shoulder at the huntress, shooting her a "seriously?" look. "That's one way to put it." She shot Stiles a brief smirk. "But let ME put it THIS way: I haven't seen Derek smile, in like, ever. Not a real smile, anyway. And now, all of a sudden, he's finally wolfed the fuck up enough to actually do something about his feelings for you and now he's smiling all the God damn time because of it; because of YOU. Coincidence? I think not, my idiot friend." She concluded with a proud grin.

Stiles rolled her eyes, though, she was still blushing like an idiot. "Well, I guess he IS a little more cheery these days." She muttered.

Lydia grinned slyly. "Because of you -- I'm telling you."

"Is he coming to the dance tomorrow?" Allison asked all too eagerly.

Stiles frowned. "I didn't ask him."

"What!? Why!?" Lydia hissed, narrowing her eyes. "Stiles!" She whined. "We're here, shopping for dresses, the dance is tomorrow and you STILL haven't asked him!?"

"There's no point." Stiles shrugged, though, she was unable to his the sadness in her voice. "He doesn't even go to high school anymore. Why the heck would he even wanna go?"

Lydia scoffed loudly, rolling her eyes. "Because he's your boyfriend, and boyfriends are supposed to do things for their girlfriends, to keep them happy!" She snapped, as if it were that simple. Which it really was to the redhead.

"He's not... My boyfriend." Stiles frown deepened slightly. "I mean; I don't think he is..."

Allison smiled to herself, shaking her head.

Lydia arched a brow, wearing an "are you serious?" look. "He took you out on a date. He's taking you out on another date this weekend. And last night, the two of you were literally dry-humping each other." She stated bluntly, as if reminding the older girl.

Stiles blushed heavily as the memories of the previous night briefly flashed through her mind.

"Look, if you don't ask him, then I will." Lydia grinned sweetly.

Stiles narrowed her eyes at the redhead -- because she knew without a doubt that she totally would, too, the beautiful-faced bitch rarely ever bluffed. "Ugh, fine." She huffed, trying to look a hard done by as she possibly could. "But I guarantee you -- I'm gonna make a complete douche outta myself." She grumbled.

Lydia simply rolled her eyes as she turned back to the rack of pretty (barely affordable) dresses.

Allison grinned, bright and ridiculously gorgeous as usual. "Oh, come on, Stiles!" She chirped. "I doubt he'll say 'no'. He's totally crazy about you."

Oh, Allison. Sweet, lovely, sometimes slightly scary-Ninja-hunter Allison, Stiles thought. 'Ever the optimistic, bless her little, hunting socks.'

Lydia scoffed at the hunter, but nodded in agreement. "Yeah. And if he DOES say 'no', Robin Hood over here," She jabbed a thumb in the huntress' direction. "Can put an arrow in his ass." She stated simply, and both other girls knew that even thought the redhead was trying to lighten the conversation up, she was also totally serious.

"Yeah." Allison nodded in agreement. "In his ass... That you love so much." She added with a wicked grin.

Stiles glared as both girls giggled in amusement. "I hate both your stupid, fucking guts right now." She grumbled before stalking off further into the store.

"Oh, come on, Stiles!" Allison whined after her, smiling sheepishly as the redhead glared briefly at her.

"So close." Lydia muttered in annoyance. "We were SO close to cracking her."


	62. Chapter 62

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Traitor."

"Good morning, Der-Bear!" Isaac chimed, waltzing out of the elevator with a wicked grin stretched from ear to ear.

Derek turned his head from his place on the couch and glared daggers at the younger wolf. "Don't call me that." He grunted before turning back to his half drunk coffee.

Isaac's grin widened even more (if fricking possible) as he moved towards the couch and plopped lazily down on the other end. "Why not?" He whined, pouting slightly. "You let Stiles call you that." He added with a small smirk, simply unable to help himself.

Derek's glare returned by tenfold.

Isaac snorted in amusement. "Oh, right, I forgot -- Stiles has boobs." And then he could practically hear the Alpha grinding his human teeth, to which Isaac held up his hands in defence. "Not that I ever look at them, obviously..." He added quickly.

Derek rolled his eyes at that, simply turning back to his coffee again instead of choosing to reply. "Why're you here, anyway? Aren't you supposed to be in school?" He grumbled, though, trying not to sound to mean, at least.

"Nah," Isaac shrugged. "High school's out for today on the account of the Homecoming dance tonight, everyone else in the pack are busy and I'm pretty fucking bored, so I thought I'd come and annoy you for a little while." He added that last part with a mischievous, little smirk.

Derek rolled his eyes, but nodded in acknowledgment. "Well, what about you? Are you going to the dance tonight?" He asked, feeling genuinely curious. With being his first ever Beta, Isaac shared a pretty close bond to him. And Derek knew that Isaac was a good boy, a kind boy and he was loyal to him. Even when that loyalty went against the loyalty Isaac had for Scott, as well.

Isaac shrugged again, though, he looked a little bummed out now. "I don't know, yet. Probably... I mean, I asked Cora, but she wasn't interested, so, y'know..."

Derek sighed quietly in defeat. And damn it, he felt a little sympathetic for the pup now. "Well, what about Stiles? I thought you were taking her." He tried ignore the petty jealousy eating away at his insides as he glared down into his now empty mug.

Isaac arched a brow, looking slightly confused. "She didn't ask you yet?" He rolled his eyes at that. "Huh... Well, why don't YOU take her?"

Derek arched a brow. "Because..." He sighed. "I'm old. And it would probably just be weird for her."

"For her? You mean for you." Isaac scoffed lightly. "And you're not even that old, man. Not like Peter or Deucalion -- 'cause damn, there wrinkles are staring to show." He smiled in triumph when the Alpha chuckled lightly. "Derek, come on, man, don't be stop being such a sourwolf -- as Stiles puts it." He grinned brightly. "Just ask her. And then I can be your third-wheel."

Derek scowled slightly. "Well, why didn't she ask me?" He mumbled out, trying very hard not to look as disappointed as he felt.

Again, Isaac scoffed. "Basically 'cause of the same reason you don't wanna go." He shrugged. "I'm guessing that Stiles knows you well enough by now to know what you'll say if she DID ask you." He added with a pointed, rather disapproving look.

Derek sighed at that, looking rather defeated by this point. "I guess..." He began, somewhat reluctantly. Though, he could feel his resolve slowly dissolving. "I guess it wouldn't be SO terrible." He mumbled with a roll of his eyes.

Isaac's expression beamed. "Seriously? You're not messing, right, Derek? 'Cause if you are, that's just mean." He narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

Derek rolled his eyes again. "Okay, okay. Just... Stop going on about it." He grumbled. "And don't tell her, either. I wanna surprise her." He added, his voice low, but holding a firm warning.

Isaac smirked wickedly, nodding eagerly. "Yes. You got it. Totally. I swear. My lips are sealed."

"Morning, boys." Peter announced his presence by sauntering out of the elevator and straight over to the large kitchenette to grab himself a cup of coffee.

Derek sighed in annoyance, but otherwise kept his mouth shut about it. For now, anyway. He was hoping to have a peaceful morning... And MAYBE go over to see Stiles (now that he knew school was a bust for the day) for some more snuggling... And kissing... And touching... And fu -- Derek quickly shut down the trail of thoughts before his body could give him away (like the stupid traitor it was).

"So," Peter sauntered towards the two younger wolves, his steaming mug in one hand and a rolled up newspaper in his other hand. "What is the topic of discussion here?" He asked, glancing expectantly between them as he sipped at his coffee.

And before Derek could even open his mouth, Isaac had annoyingly beaten him to it. "Der-Bear's going to the Homecoming dance with Stiles tonight! And I'M their third-wheel!" The youngest werewolf chimed excitedly, earning a glare from the Alpha. Isaac merely shrugged in response, grinning wickedly.

"Well, how lovely for you, Isaac." Peter chirped back at the youngest werewolf before arching a brow at his nephew. He looked somewhere between surprised and utterly amused. His lips slowly pulled up into that infamous Peter Hale grin of his. "Now, what's this all about, Cinderella?" He teased, earning a loud laugh from Isaac.

Derek glared at the both of them, although, his so-called uncle in particular.

"You're REALLY going to take Stiles to her Homecoming dance?" Peter asked, looking slightly shocked. "Well, she MUST be VERY special, if you're going to go out and have some actual fun." He added, clearly taunting the Alpha.

Isaac chuckled, still smirking broadly, his eyes lit up with pure amusement.

"Yes, she is. So, shut up and get out. BOTH of you." Derek grunted as he hauled himself from the couch and stalked back towards the kitchenette...

...Stiles was bored. There only an hour and a half left until the Homecoming dance began for the night and Stiles was so fricking bored. She had already gotten ready -- slipping on her dress, which was a simple red number, slim cut, knee-length and thankfully comfortable in all the right places where the cotton material hugged her womanly curves and a pair of comfortable black flat shoes to go with it. And again, her make-up was simple; a little mascara, eyeliner and shiny lipgloss.

"Wow,"

Stiles turned away from the mirror to see her father standing in the open doorway of her bedroom. "Oh, hey, dad." She gave him a small greeting smile.

"Look at you." John smiled brightly as he shuffled tiredly over to his daughter. "I've haven't seen you wearing actual girly clothing for years... You look beautiful, Stiles... Just like your mother."

Stiles felt her throat clench painfully at those words and her chest ached immensely when she noticed her father's eyes shining with unshed tears. "Dad, please don't make me cry right now or I'm gonna end up looking like a drowned rat." She half joked, trying to lighten the mood as she motioned to the little bit of make-up covering her face.

John chuckled lightly. "Right. Sorry, kiddo." He nodded, holding a hand of surrender up. "Do you need a ride or are you taking the Jeep?" He asked curiously.

Stiles shook her head, smiling. "Nah. Lydia ordered a limo to pick us up. They should be here soon." She explained.

John arched a brow, looking somewhat surprised. "Nice."

Stiles grinned and nodded. "Totally..."

...Scott arched a brow, looking pleasantly surprised. "Holy frick, Stiles, you look awesome." He breathed, never having seen his best friend in a dress before.

"Doesn't she?" John chirped, placing a hand on his daughter's shoulder and giving it an affectionate squeeze.

"So, there IS a girl under there, after all." Danny teased, causing a few of the others to chuckle.

"Leave her alone, douchebags." Allison barked, glaring daggers at the boys.

Stiles blushed under all of their gazes. "Okay, thank you, all... Can we go now?"

Ethan grinned and nodded. "We can."

"Our chariot awaits." Aiden motioned towards the slick, black limo parked up across the street with wide open arms.

"Where's Red?" Stiles asked with a small, but confused frown. She then narrowed her eyes between the group when a few of them smirked to themselves. Somehow, she figured that her so-called friends were hiding something from her. "Guys?" She asked warily. "Where is Lydia?"

"She's STILL busy making herself look perfect, so she asked us to pick her up last." Allison replied casually, a little too casually -- damn, was the huntress bitch difficult to read sometimes.

"Yeah. Besides, we still have a half hour to kill before the dance actually starts." Scott piped up, nodding in agreement -- obviously backing his girlfriend up (which Stiles fought the urge to roll her eyes over).

"And we can kill that time by kicking back like a bunch of kings and drinking a shitload of expensive champagne!" Ethan chimed, clearly excited by the idea.

"Hmm." Stiles hummed, her eyes still narrowed slightly as she eyed them each closely for any telltale sign of their obvious lying.

John chuckled at his daughter before giving her a gentle shove out of the house. "Just go out and be a normal teenager -- ALL of you. No supernatural business tonight, okay?" He added that last part quickly, his tone light, but stern.

Stiles smirked back at him. "Yeah, no promises there, dad."

John narrowed his eyes at her. "Scott, you make sure she stays outta trouble." He smirked, his eyes still locked on hers as he spoke.

Stiles narrowed her eyes back at him. "HIM? Look after ME?" She scoffed lightly, earning a glare from her best friend and a few sniggers from the others. "Dad, he can't even look after himself. In fact, I look after HIM. I'm literally like, his full-time carer or something. It's exhausting."

"Hey!" Scott barked, look completely and utterly offended. "What the hell's THAT supposed to mean?"

Stiles glanced over her shoulder at the dim werewolf. "It means; you're a moron, dude." She chimed sweetly before shooting her father a pointed look. "Everyday." She shook her head in dismay. "EVERYDAY I have to put up with that level of intelligence... Or lack of therefore."

"That's it!" Scott snapped, glaring daggers at his so-called best friend. "I take it back! You don't look awesome! You look like a bag of dicks!"

Stiles slowly turned around to stare at him, the others slowly turning their gazes to their Alpha, too. "Wow, that's actually a pretty creative one -- I'll give you THAT." Stiles smirked, looking somewhat impressed.

"Ah, the force is strong in this one, Vadar." Ethan piped up, smirking widely.

And really, Stiles couldn't help, but burst out laughing at that one...

...Lydia was angry. There was only 40 fucking minutes left until the Homecoming dance began for the night and Lydia was absolutely fucking pissed off right now. Because, really, what the hell was Derek Hale's stupid problem NOW!? 'That guy has ALWAYS got a problem with SOMETHING. Ugh!'

"What're YOU doing here? Don't you have that stupid dance tonight?" Cora asked, arching an expectant brow.

"YOU." Lydia narrowed her eyes over at the she wolf as she slammed her car door and stormed over to her. "You and your stupid brother. BOTH of you!"

Cora simply shot her a "what the fuck?" look.

"YES, I'm supposed to be at that 'stupid' dance." Lydia narrowed her eyes even further. "But instead, I'm having to come and drag your stupid werewolf asses out of hiding!" She let out a loud huff, crossing her arms over her chest.

Cora rolled her eyes. "Yeah, well, that's not gonna happen." She stated broadly. "But Derek can do whatever he wants." She added with a bored shrug. "I'm actually surprised he didn't ask Stiles about the dance."

"Oh, you ARE going." Lydia snapped. "I even brought you a nice dress, so don't even try giving me any lame excuses." She stalked back to her car, yanking the trunk open and pulling out a large duffel bag.

Cora simply arched a brow as the redhead stormed passed her, stalking back towards her big brother's apartment building...

...Derek straightened his black tie (because there was just no fucking way that he was ever going to wear a stupid bow-tie) for the fourth time, feeling his nerves bubbling away at the pit of his stomach. He glanced back at his reflection one more time and let out a tired sigh when he heard an all too familiar voice angrily yelling his name. He quickly stalked out of his room and down the spiral staircase to see Lydia storming out of the elevator with Cora lazily tagging along behind her.

"Derek! Get your ass down here and --" Lydia halted immediately, her eyes landing on the werewolf standing at the bottom of the stairs. "Holy crap... You're... You're wearing a suit..." She muttered, looking somewhere between surprised and confused.

Cora arched a brow, looking more shocked than anything. "You look good." She stated with a small, but bright smile.

Derek offered a small smile back, though, he knew that if he didn't look as nervous as he felt right now, his baby sister would know anyway. "Uh, thanks..." He mumbled back.

"Wait -- why are you wearing a suit?" Lydia asked, narrowing her eyes suspiciously. "And I REALLY hope it's the reason I think it is." She added, somewhat threateningly.

Derek rolled his eyes, but couldn't help smirking in amusement slightly. "I'll go on one condition --"

Lydia arched a brow. "Okay..." She said, her voice wary.

"Cora comes with us, too." Derek said, shooting his sister a pointed look. "And if not for Isaac, then for me."

Cora narrowed her eyes at him. "Traitor." She muttered somewhat venomously.

Lydia rolled her eyes, though, she couldn't help grinning. "Well, duh!" She chirped.

Derek chuckled lightly and nodded. "Alright, then."

"Alright!" Lydia chimed, shooting him an excited look before turning back to the she wolf with a more stern look. "Come on, sourwolf junior! We've got 15 minutes until the limo picks us up!"


	63. Chapter 63

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "If it's important to you, then it's important to me, too."

"Wait -- you said that we were picking Lydia up." Stiles frowned in confusion as the limo slowly pulled up outside of Beacon Hills High. She glared back at her so-called friends, her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Alright, what's going on? Seriously." She demanded, folding her arms defiantly over her chest. "There is NO way that Red is arriving to the dance in anything, but a limo. She said so herself. And we are all sitting in said limo now, only she's nowhere to be seen!" She added with a pointed look. "What's going on!?" She snapped.

Aiden arched a brow, looking a lot more relaxed than the others. "Stiles, baby," He raised his hands in a calming manner. "Chill the fuck out -- our Queen B is just running a little late, that's all. The limo's going back for her."

"Yeah, you know how she is." Allison added, wearing her usual bright smile.

"I'm not buying it." Stiles grunted. "But," She sighed lightly in defeat, slowly uncrossing her arms. "Tonight, I'm actually gonna listen to my dad -- for once in my life -- and at least try to have a good time... Plus, the champagne already kinda got to my head a little, so... Let's party, bitches!"

"Yes! THAT'S the spirit! I love it!" Aiden clapped excitedly before reaching for the door. "May I, milady?" He offered his arm out to her, wearing his usual cocky grin.

Stiles rolled her eyes, but couldn't help chuckling. "Why, thank you, kind sir." She chirped back, hooking her arm around his.

"Wow," Ethan raised his brows, looking slightly impressed at the masses of students who actually turned up, all wearing their best formal/party clothes. "Pretty cool turnout." He nodded his approval. "There will be alcohol, right?"

Danny chuckled as he linked arms with his boyfriend. "No. It's a SCHOOL dance." He stated in a "duh" tone, though, he really couldn't help smiling in amusement when the werewolf pouted back at him.

"Ah, no worries," Aiden smirked as he pulled out a small bottle out of each of his blazer pockets. "I got everyone's backs."

Ethan nodded, smirking back at his twin. "Respect, bro."

"You're such an alcohol, dude. I hope you know that." Stiles piped up with a smirk of her own.

Ethan rolled his eyes. "Doesn't count if you rarely ever actually get wasted." He countered snootily.

Stiles merely scoffed, as if to say, "yeah, right, what-the-fuck-ever, dude." Well, her scoffs were very expressive sometimes. Almost as much as her actual use of words. Sometimes.

"Are we just gonna stand here all night long!? Let's go already, huh!?" Isaac chimed, earning a rather suspicious look from Stiles as well as a few of the others. Apparently, it had been no secret to them of Isaac's pathetic crush over the youngest Hale -- so really, they had to wander just why the hell he was still so happy.

Stiles arched a brow, glancing over to Scott, who simply shrugged his shoulders...

...Stiles was bored. Already. And again. She stood with the gang upon arrival for a few minutes as they drifted around the crowded gym hall, music blaring loudly and students all dressed up and dancing wildly, some even managing to find a way to get wasted as they lumbered around, easy to spot in the crowds. A little while later and the group had mainly split up -- Scott, Allison, Ethan and Danny all gravitated towards the dance floor, there was Aiden, who of course had ended up just dumping the entire contents of each vodka bottle into the large bowl of mixed fruit punch, and Isaac, who had been pleasantly surprised when approached and asked to dance with by Stacy Goldman -- one of the most popular girls in the entire high school.

And then there was Stiles, of course. And right now, Stiles was standing by the buffet table (like she had been for the last half hour) doing what she did second best to talking; eating. Well, practically stuffing her face out of mere boredom.

"Stiles!" Aiden sauntered over to the human a cup of punch in his hand and a big grin slapped across his face. "Hey! What's up, girly? You look like you're having a total buh-last!" He chirped sarcastically.

Stiles rolled her eyes. "I am, actually." She replied with a snooty tone. "These cupcakes are ah-mazing!" She countered with just as much sarcasm. Although, the cupcakes really were amazing.

Aiden rolled his eyes this time. "Seriously, though -- stop being such a wallflower." He stated with a slight pout.

Stiles glared at him, looking slightly offended. "I'm not being a wallflower!" She all, but squealed. "I'm just bored." She shrugged, taking another couple of dorito chips and shoving them mercilessly into her mouth.

"Well, I can fix THAT." Aiden said, motioning towards the punch bowl.

Stiles rolled her eyes again, but smirked slightly in amusement. "Eh, no, thanks." She wrinkled her nose lightly. "My head still feels kinda fuzzy from the limo. First time I ever had champagne." She added sheepishly.

Aiden chuckled. "You're such a lightweight, Stilinski."

"Shut up, asshat." Stiles retorted, shooting him a more playful glare this time.

Aiden chuckled again. "'Asshat'. I like it."

Stiles merely rolled her eyes, but couldn't help smiling slightly as she continued to shove dorito chips into her greedy mouth.

"I thought you were gonna ask Derek about tonight -- so why didn't you?" Aiden asked, tilting his head slightly and staring curiously at her.

Stiles gave a lazy shrug. "Didn't think this was his kinda scene." She mumbled.

Aiden arched a brow. "Well, I doubt he would have refused." He smiled, a rare, but genuine smile when she shot him a curious, almost suspicious look. "If you haven't already noticed by now; Derek's pretty crazy about you." He stated bluntly, his smile quickly growing into a broad grin as he witnessed her cheeks instantly flushing. "Y'know, Stilinski, for the intelligent girl that you are, you're pretty fucking stupid sometimes." He then added with an amused chuckle.

Stiles huffed at that, beginning to grow a little irritated of every sticking their stupid noses into her business. Like they even fucking knew. Ugh. "Well, then, where is Derek right now, huh!?" She snapped, now glaring up at the werewolf. And still, she still felt rather guilty for taking her anger out on Aiden. It wasn't his fault. It was hers. Again. It was always her stupid fault. She let out a loud, tired sigh, lowering her gaze back to the buffet table. "I'm sorry." She mumbled, knowing that, thankfully, he could hear her, even over the loud music.

"Stiles," Aiden grinned widely as he spotted a familiar redhead by the entrance of the gym hall.

Stiles sighed quietly, glancing up at the werewolf. She frowned upon seeing his expression. "What?" She asked, looking completely confused now.

Aiden turned his beaming expression towards her. "Why don't you turn around and see for yourself where Derek is?" He asked all too casually before returning his gaze to the large double doors.

"What?" Stiles slowly followed his gaze, slowly turning around and felt her heart actually fucking skip several beats. Her eyes slowly widened as they settled on Derek himself, in a fricking suit. And what the -- had he shaved his five 'o' clock shadow off!? And now Stiles' mind was literally blown by this point. She was frozen in her place, her gaze glued to him, her heart racing in her chest and her pulse ringing in her ears. She watched Lydia from the corner of her gaze, scanning the crowds and instantly spotting her and Aiden. Her heart raced even harder and faster as the werewolf's gaze quickly drifted across the crowd and landed on hers. And seriously, she seriously felt like her heart was going to explode when he shot her a small, lopsided grin.

"Surprise!" Aiden chimed, chuckling in amusement at the human's expression.

"W-what..." Stiles didn't even know what the fuck to think right now, let alone say. 'Holy fuck.' She thought as the three started to make their way over, with Lydia pushing rudely through the crowds of students.

"What the fuck!?" Isaac chimed as he suddenly appeared out of the crowds from behind. "Is that Cora!?" His eyes widened, his heart instantly beginning to race. "Holy shit... He actually did it. Derek actually convinced her!" He chimed happily, not even caring if she could hear him as she came closer.

"Wait -- what!?" Stiles finally tore her gaze away from Derek and glared over at Isaac in realisation. "You knew he was coming, too!?"

"Well, yeah, but he made me promise not to tell, 'cause he wanted to surprise you." Isaac explained, wearing a sheepish smile.

Stiles arched a brow, looking, well, incredibly surprised, her glare disappearing altogether. "He did?" She mumbled, her cheeks flushing slightly. And oh, dear God, how did she become such a fricking girl?

Isaac grinned. "Yep." He chirped just in time. "Hey, guys, better late than never!" He chirped. "Hey, Cora... You look, uh, you look REALLY good..." And now it was his turn to blush.

Cora wanted to roll her eyes at that, except, she found herself offering the dopey Beta a small smile instead. Much to her annoyance, of course.

"You, uh, you wanna dance?" Isaac asked, looking all too hopeful.

Cora glanced at her brother, who was shooting her a rather stern look. She glanced back to Isaac with a sigh and nodded. "Yeah. Why not?" She chirped back, even managing a small grin.

"Sweet." Isaac grinned widely, his dark blue orbs lit up. "May I?" He offered his hand out to her.

Cora rolled her eyes playfully before taking his hand with her own and then allowing him to drag her over to the dance floor.

"Baby, you look fucking delicious." Aiden purred smoothly and shamelessly as he sauntered over to the redhead. He grabbed her around the waist, gently pulling her to him and placing a sweet kiss on her cheek.

"Don't I just?" Lydia aired with a cheeky grin, fanning herself for emphasis. "Let's go get our dance on!" She chimed, shooting her boyfriend a subtle look.

Aiden grinned knowingly and nodded. "Right!" He chirped. "Want some vodka punch?" He asked casually, offering his half empty, plastic cup to the redhead as the two of them sauntered slowly, becoming quickly lost in the crowds.

Derek rolled his eyes at the couple's blatantness before turning his gaze back to Stiles. "So... Surprise." He half-heartedly motioned down to his attire as well as himself, a small, nervous smile hanging from the corners of his lips.

If Stiles could find her sense of humour right now, she would most definitely of laughed at that. But no. She could still barely think. And now, it seemed that the stupid, sexy sourwolf wanted her to form actual words and make full on sentences with those stupid words. Pff, words. "Uh, I..." She breathed, staring up at him with wide eyes as he moved slowly closer, now standing right in front of her. "Y-you're... You shaved..." Okay, good start, at least.

"Yeah..." Derek mumbled, mentally cursing himself as he felt his cheeks burn. And without his facial hair, he could hardly fricking hide the fact he was blushing. 'Ugh. Good one, Derek.'

"And..." Stiles' eyes flickered briefly down to his clothing before settling back on his. "You're wearing a tux..." Well, at least she was still observant. 'Ugh. You're doing great, Stiles.'

Derek scoffed out a small laugh at that. "Yeah... Uh, you like?" He fought back a cringe at how stupid he had just sounded.

Stiles chuckled quietly at that. She slowly reached out a hand, grabbing his black tie and tugging on it gently. "Why did you come?" She asked, eyeing him curiously.

"Why didn't you ask me?" Derek arched a pointed brow back. And though Isaac had already explained it to him, he needed to hear it from Stiles herself.

"I didn't think you'd want to... It's just a stupid dance to you..." Stiles mumbled, averting her eyes from his with a slight frown.

Derek sighed quietly before reaching out, his hand gently settling on either side of her waist. "Even so," He pulled her a little closer. "If it's important to you, then it's important to me, too."

"Really?" Stiles felt her heart racing again and it was beginning to wear her out. Though, in the most wonderful way.

Derek grinned, leaning forward and placing a short, but sweet kiss to her lips. "Really."

"Hey, fuckers!" Ethan yelled out, appearing at the edge of the dancing crowds and completely ruining the moment.

Derek let out a low growl of annoyance before glaring over at the intoxicated Alpha. Although, still, in the back of his mind there, he was rather impressed that the werewolf had managed to do so.

Stiles chuckled, glancing over at the Alpha twin and shaking her head at his completely bloodshot eyes.

Ethan glared back at the both of them, seeming very displeased about something. "Either get a fucking room or get your horny asses out on the dance floor!"


	64. Chapter 64

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 'Pretty sure that you're the one...'

"So!?" Lydia chirped as she bounded over to the newest formed couple of their pack. "Did I do good?" She asked, motioning to the oldest Alpha with a cheeky grin.

Stiles chuckled at the over excited (and slightly sozzled) redhead. "Yeah," She glanced briefly to Derek and smiled. "Yeah, you did good, Red. Thank you." She nodded.

Lydia grinned brightly. "Well, you're not-so little Der-Bear, here, actually did all the work for me." She smirked smugly at him when he glared at her for the nickname. "I was on my way over to the loft to give him a piece of my mind -- wasn't I, Derek?" She giggled. "But he was already dressed to surprise and party."

"So I've heard." Stiles smirked to herself when she noticed the light pink blush spreading across sourwolf's bare cheeks.

"Yeah. Kinda took the fun outta it for me, really." Lydia pouted slightly at that. "But doesn't he just look adorable in his little suit!?" She gushed, emphasising her pouty over at him.

Derek merely rolled his eyes, mentally cursing both the redhead and himself when he felt his cheeks heating up all the more.

Stiles chuckled. "Okay, Red, leave him alone now." She shot the redhead a pointed look.

And Derek really did want to kiss his mate for coming to his rescue there. He could feel his wolf practically let out a whimper of relief, too.

Lydia pouted again. "Ugh. Fine. But you're no fun anymore, Stilinski." She whined, glaring over at the Alpha. "And I'm guessing it's YOUR fault." She made a loud let out a sigh of frustration before flickering her long, strawberry red locks out of her face and sauntering off back into the crowds.

Stiles chuckled, watching after the redhead and shaking her head in amusement. "Sorry about Red. She likes to pretend that she can handle her drinking, but..." She smiled sheepishly as she turned back to face the werewolf. "It's cool, though -- she probably won't remember much of tonight. Thanks to Aiden." She grinned in amusement when sourwolf shot her a look of confusion. "He spiked the punch." She explained simply.

Derek rolled his eyes, but couldn't help smirking slightly in amusement, too. "I guess that explains why Ethan's wasted already. It's not even 10 'o' clock yet." He noted.

Stiles chuckled, her eyes drifting towards the dance floor. She easily spotted her friends -- Ethan and Danny drunkenly grinding against one another, Scott and Allison dancing a little more tenderly (thankfully keeping it PG) and then there was Isaac and Cora actually dancing and actually fricking smiling. Like a real smile. Stiles smiled to herself as she turned back to her sourwolf. 'MY sourwolf?' She glanced into his eyes and felt her heart skip several beats at the intensity the green-blue pools held within them. 'Y-yeah... Definitely mine... Holy... Crap...'

Derek somehow fought back a smug smirk as he listened to her heartbeat closely, carefully and even over all the noise. And of course, it helped that his senses were even better now that he was an Alpha again. "By the way," He almost purred, his voice low as he slipped his arms around her waist and gently pulled her back to him. "You look beautiful." He leaned forward, placing a soft kiss to her lips. "Actually, you're probably the most beautiful girl in this room... In fact..." He mumbled, pressing another couple of kisses to her lips and enjoying himself as he watched her eyes flutter, her cheeks flush, as well as hear her heart racing along with his own. "You're probably the most beautiful girl in this life and the next..."

"'Probably'?" Stiles whispered, barely even managing that. And it was times like these that she was grateful for his keen, werewolf hearing.

Derek grinned. "Definitely." He stated broadly before leaning in for another, this time longer kiss.

'Looking for someone,  
Looking for someone,  
I don't know where they are...'

Stiles smiled against his lips as she heard one of her favourite songs begin to play over the large speakers, as if on cue to this fricking perfect moment. Like seriously. Was this even actually happening? Well, even if it was a dream, she was going to make the most of it, she decided as she wrapped her arms around his neck, bringing him even closer.

'Looking for someone,  
Looking for someone,  
I don't know who they are...'

Derek pulled away reluctantly after a few moments and rested his forehead against hers. "Dance with me?" He mumbled out against her lips and arching a brow as he waited for her to answer.

'God, I need someone,  
God, I need someone,  
Hope they aren't very far...'

Stiles stared blankly back up at him for a few moments, feeling slightly speechless for the second time in one night. Like, serious. What the hell? "But... You don't like dancing... Or loud music... Or crowds..." She stated. "Or fun..." She couldn't help add that last part with a small, but clearly amused grin.

'Now I need something,  
Now I need something,  
Just for me and no one else...'

Derek narrowed his eyes before rolling them. "I like fun." He scowled at her, then mentally scalding himself at how stupid he had actually sounded just then. He shot her a playful glare when she stared up at him in amusement and then slowly leaned back down to place another short and sweet kiss to her lips. "I like being around YOU." He pointed out, smirking in amusement right back at her, letting her know that, "Yes, I can hear your heart scatter right now." '-- And I fucking love it.' He thought. "Dance with me." And this time, he wasn't asking. But he seemed to think he was being smart by leaning down for another kiss. But maybe it was just his method of persuasion... Pretty fucking sweet method.

'I want something for myself,  
I want something for myself...'

And okay, Stiles couldn't really complain about it. Any of it. Not when she could feel the incredible warmth of his hands deliciously scorching her waist through the thin material of her dress. And especially not when those large, warm hands were gently squeezing at her flesh.

'Think I feel nothing,  
You think I feel nothing,  
You don't know how wrong you are...'

"Ugh, that is disgusting."

Stiles froze at that familiar voice and slowly pulled away from the werewolf, ignoring his confusion as she swirled around to glare at the biggest bitch in Beacon Hills High. "Shove off, Nancy." She growled.

'Now you feel something,  
Now you feel something,  
Can't you let it open up?'

Nancy let out an amused scoff. "Is that the best you've got, Stilinski?" She chuckled, shaking her head. "Y'know what -- there's no dogs allowed at this dance, so maybe YOU should leave. But you're friend can definitely stay." She added, eyeing Derek with a smirk.

Now, Derek didn't go around hitting women, well, not human ones anyway, and not unless they deserved it (like Kate, Kali, Jennifer, Silver, and well, the list goes on). And right fucking now, the werewolf was REALLY trying NOT to do just that.

'Looking for someone,  
Looking for someone,  
I don't know that you're the one...'

Stiles chuckled lightly, much to sourwolf's surprised expression, as well as Nancy's. "Is that all YOU'VE got, Doyle?" She arched a brow, shooting the girl a deeply unimpressed look. "Y'know, what, Nancy?" She continued before the other girl could even think of responding. "I think I've come up with a theory as to why you're such a continuously, colossal bitch."

"What!?" Nancy snapped, looking somewhere between annoyed and shocked.

'Looking for someone,  
Looking for someone,  
Pretty sure that you're the one...'

Stiles smiled sweetly as she went on. "Y'see, Nancy, you're popular, because you're body developed at an early age, and you started putting out when you were 12 years old, but now, you can't even stand to look at yourself in the mirror, because all you see is a equally colossal whore, so you pick on other people, who delusionally deem less worthy of life than yourself to avoid the inevitable realisation that once you're body is already used up at the age of 19, you're gonna be a worn-out, chalky-skinned, burlap sack that even you're alcoholic stepdad won't want -- so how's that, huh? Am I in the ballpark?"

Nancy's eyes were fully widened and brimming with thick, unshed tears by this point. And Stiles watched in somewhat disturbing pleasure as the girl's bottom lip trembled before she turned and ran off altogether.

'Once around and now you're gone,  
Once around and now you're gone...'

Derek stared after the girl before glancing back at his mate with a slightly shocked expression. "Um... A little harsh, maybe?" He tried, but miserably failed to bite back an amused smirk.

'Think I feel nothing,  
You think I feel nothing,  
You don't know how wrong you are...'

Stiles grinned as she turned back around to face him. "Or not." She chirped, shrugging her shoulders. "Scott and I went to kindergarten with her and she used to make Scott cry a lot."

'Now you feel something,  
Now you feel something,  
Can't you let it open up?'

Derek smirked in amusement before reaching for her hand. "Come on."

'Looking for someone,  
Looking for someone,  
I don't know that you're the one...'

Stiles heart began to race again as she slipped her hand in his and allowed him to tug her gently towards the dance floor. He pulled her through the crowds and stopped once they found the others.

"Well, well, look who finally joined the party!" Aiden announced with a sozzled grin on his face and the redhead smirking at the new couple from her place, which was literally latching onto her own werewolf boyfriend's waist.

Stiles chuckled. "Is he drunk?"

"Obliterated." Lydia beamed, swaying along to the music.

"Where's Cora?" Derek asked curiously.

Scott smirked. "Her and Isaac are outside; 'talking'."

Stiles laughed at the scowl forming on sourwolf's face. She smirked, deciding to use his sudden distraction to her advantage by slowly sliding her hands up his chest and around to the back of his neck, lacing her fingers there.

'Looking for someone,  
Looking for someone,  
Pretty sure that you're the one...'

Derek's gaze instantly snapped back to hers, his thoughts of Cora and Isaac vanishing entirely.

'Once around and now you're gone...'

"Dance with me?" Stiles mumbled, shooting him a sheepish smile.

'Once around and now you're gone...'

Derek felt his heart racing hard and fast as he stared down at her, feeling almost lost in those large, bright, whiskey, doe orbs glancing nervously from under those thick, black lashes. No, he didn't dance. And he didn't really like loud music anymore. Or people, for that matter. But tonight, and for Stiles; fuck, yeah, he would dance. He would dance fricking butt naked in the rain and mud, if she asked him to. And God, damn, that thought shouldn't really be as appealing as it was to him. He quickly shook away all of those thoughts (for now, anyway) as he slipped his arms around her waist and pulled her to him in response. He leaned down once again, placing one last kiss to her lips and then resting his forehead against her own.

'Once around and now you're gone...'

Stiles closed her eyes and smiled softly to herself as they both began to slowly sway from side to side.

'Once around and now you're gone...'


	65. Chapter 65

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You know that I always keep my promises, Bambi."

The next day was a Saturday. And thank God it was, because half of the gang were suffering for their drinking the previous night. And that suffering even included a few of the werewolves -- much to Stiles' pleasure and entertainment.

"What the fuck are YOU smiling for, Stilinski?" Ethan barked, glaring over at the human.

Stiles smirked smugly. "How's the hangover, pup?" She chirped, too loudly and too brightly, and on purpose, of course.

Ethan merely glared up at her. "Pff... 'Pup'." He grumbled under his breath.

"Stiles, please," Lydia begged, wincing slightly at the sound of her voice. "PLEASE stop talking."

"Stiles? Stop talking?" Allison scoffed loudly in amusement as she hauled herself up from her bed.

Stiles merely glared up at the young huntress.

Allison smirked. "Anyone want a coffee refill?"

"God, YES, please." Lydia whined, holding her empty mug out to him.

Allison's smirk widened as he took the mug from her.

"Nah, I'm good. I just need some more sleep." Ethan mumbled tiredly from his place snuggled warmly between Stiles and Lydia.

Allison nodded before quietly exiting her bedroom.

"You comfortable enough down there?" Stiles asked, smiling in amusement down at the Alpha twin.

Ethan shot her a cheesy grin. "You bet your skinny ass, I am." He declared before rolling over onto his stomach and burying his face into the puffy pillows.

Stiles chuckled, shaking her head. "How's Aiden?" She asked, a teasing tone in her voice.

"Meh." Ethan mumbled into the pillow. "Worse off than me, at least." He grinned to himself.

"And where's your boyfriend, hmm?" Lydia asked, glaring down at the back of the werewolf's head. "Shouldn't HE be the one to nurse your hangover?"

Ethan sighed as he turned his head to face her. "Same as Aiden -- he's working until 6. It sucks." He grumbled with a small pout.

Lydia simply nodded in acknowledgement.

Stiles chuckled again. And okay, even if she would never forgive the twins for what they had made Derek do to Boyd, she could at least admit that if she did have to choose, Ethan was probably the most adorable and probably her favourite. Not that she would ever tell Lydia that, obviously. But then again, Ethan was always the more easy-going and kindest out of the pair. So, it was kind of easy to choose, really.

"So, where's DEREK at today?" Ethan asked, wearing a small smirk.

Stiles mentally cursed herself as she felt her cheeks heat up a little. "I don't know. I'm not his keeper." She replied with an all too casual shrug.

Both the redhead and the werewolf exchanged knowing smirks before arching their brows at the human in unison.

Stiles let out a small huff. "What NOW?" She practically whined.

"No, nothing." Ethan replied all too sweetly.

Stiles narrowed her eyes at him.

"And where exactly did you two sneak off to last night after the dance?" Lydia asked, arching both her brows this time.

Stiles rolled her eyes, ignoring her burning face. "We just went for a walk... And... Ben and Jerry's was still open... So..." She mumbled with a sheepish smile.

Ethan's eyes widened in amazement. "You were practically stuffing your face at the buffet for the first hour!" He exclaimed. "Damn. Where the fuck do you put it all, girl?" He asked, wearing a slightly concerned look now.

Stiles simply rolled her eyes in response, though, she couldn't help smiling a little bit, too. Her mind briefly flashed back to her first date, where sourwolf had said something along the same lines of that.

"I'm back, my grunts." Allison announced, closing the door with her foot before shuffling back over to the bed. "There ya go, Lyds." She chirped, handing one of the steaming mugs over.

Lydia offered a small smile and an even smaller nod as she practically snatched the mug back.

Allison rolled her eyes and smirked, placing her mug down on her nightstand. "Shall we watch a movie or something?" She suggested, pointing towards the open laptop on her desk.

"Meh." Ethan shrugged.

"Whatever. As long as it's not too loud." Lydia mumbled as she sipped at her third mug of coffee.

Stiles nodded. "What you got, Al?" She chirped.

Allison grinned as she grabbed her laptop and flopped down, sprawling herself out over all three pairs of legs. "Pretty much all I watch is comedy or horror flicks." She said as she scrolled her fingers lightly over the mouse pad. "Here -- how 'bout the old Buffy movie. A classic."

"Ugh. Seriously?" Lydia arched a brow, not looking the least bit impressed.

Stiles and Ethan chuckled in amusement.

"Anyway, how come YOU didn't get roped into Scott's lovely family dinner tonight?" Stiles arched a somewhat impressed brow at her best friend's girlfriend.

Allison grinned. "I just told him that he should at least give his dad one last chance to be a part of his life." She explained with an all too casual shrug.

Stiles scoffed. "And he listened to THAT?" She asked, clearly disbelieving.

Allison scoffed out a small laugh. "No, not for a second." She chirped, wearing a slightly disturbing grin.

Stiles narrowed her eyes slightly. "You threatened him with sex -- didn't you?"

"You bet your ass, I did." Allison chimed with a proud smirk.

Stiles wrinkled her nose slightly. "Okay, ew. I'm sorry, I ask... Why do I always ask?" She shook her head to herself in utter dismay.

Both Allison and Ethan laughed at that.

"Okay, okay. No more laughing." Lydia piped up, shooting all three of them a rather stern look. "Not if you can't laugh QUIETLY."

To which, the three simply rolled their eyes.

"Fuck it, we're watching Buffy." Allison chirped before launching the movie as laying comfortably back on the others extended legs. It was the least they could do for taking up the space of her entire fricking bed.

"The werewolves are so gay in the show." Ethan muttered.

Stiles rolled her eyes. "Maybe that's because you're an actual werewolf." She pointed out.

Ethan merely rolled his eyes.

Stiles smirked to herself before settling back against the headboard and watching the movie silently along with the others. And as she leant her head against the redhead's shoulder, she suddenly felt her phone vibrating in her hoodie pocket. She frowned curiously, digging a hand into her pocket before pulling it out. It was a text message. From -- Stiles attention perked up considerably as she leaned away from the redhead. A text message. From Derek. And as always, her heart instantly began to race, but she ignored it (as well as the fact that Ethan could probably hear it, too) as she quickly opened the message.

From Sourwolf --  
'You busy right now, Bambi? (:'

And as Stiles felt her heart flutter slightly and the corners of hers lips slightly tug upwards, she decided that she could get used to this whole smiley face business. After a whole minute, when she had finally calmed the fuck down (because seriously, pathetic, much? It was just a fricking smiley face, for crying out loud!) she slowly --trying to be subtle as the others continued to stare at the laptop screen like the hungover zombies that they were, she began to type her reply back before sending it.

To Sourwolf --  
'Nope. Not really.  
Whyyyy?'

And yeah, okay, so Stiles WAS kind of busy right now. But meh, whatever. She fought back the huge and stupid grin begging to break free as her phone vibrated just a few moments later.

From Sourwolf --  
'Not really?  
I'll call you later instead, if you're busy?'

Stiles' eyes widened slightly before she quickly began to type her reply.

To Sourwolf --  
'No, really. I'm not busy. I was bored, Allison, Ethan and Lydia were all bored. So now we're all hanging.  
What's up? You got me all curious now. ;)'

Stiles' heart raced a little as she sent that last message. 'God, I don't even know what the hell I'm doing here.' She thought, and that thought made her feel slightly miserable. Her heart fluttered again when he replied after another few moments.

From Sourwolf --  
'I just wanna see you. I kinda miss you. (:'

Stiles grinned, even letting slip a small, but disgusting girly giggle. She instantly slapped her free hand over her mouth just as the other three all glanced over at her.

Lydia arched a brow, her gaze drifting down to the phone in Stiles' hands. She smirked, rolling her eyes and then quickly snatched the phone out of the older girl's hands.

"Hey! Give it back!" Stiles snapped, her eyes narrowing.

Lydia giggled loudly, as if rubbing that little outburst in her face and smirked smugly. "Well, I wonder who's texting Stiles right now..." She aired casually.

Ethan chuckled.

"Lydia, come on." Allison tried to help Stiles, but only ended up smirking in amusement.

"Red! Give it back!" Stiles barked, holding out her hand.

"Nope." Lydia grinned when Stiles glared at her. "Let's see..." She glanced down at the phone in her hand and smiled sweetly as she read the text. "Awh!" She gushed. "He misses you. That's SO cute."

Stiles growled, like, actually fucking growled. "That's it!" She barked, quickly reaching forward and snatching the phone back. "I'm outta here!" She huffed, pulling herself out of the pile of limbs.

"Lyds." Allison scalded the redhead, while the werewolf fought back another amused smirk.

"Oh, come on! Don't be such a whiney, little biatch." Lydia rolled her eyes, though, she was smiling all too innocently. "I'm not teasing. I really do think it's cute."

Stiles didn't bother replying. She simply shot the redhead one last glare before stalking out of the room. And yeah, okay, it was definitely an over-reaction. But hey, it got her out of there, didn't it? Stiles grinned triumphantly to herself as she sauntered down the stairs out of the hunter house. Though, as her phone vibrated again and she then read the message, her grin quickly disappeared.

From Sourwolf --  
'Sorry. I don't wanna freak you out or anything.'

Stiles eyes widened, her chest actually aching slightly. She frowned, pressing the number and dialling. And if she was calling him just because she wanted to hear his voice, then so fricking what?

"Stiles? Are you okay?"

Stiles smiled when he answered on the second ring and smiled even more when he spoke. "Hey. Yeah, I'm fine. Just about to drive home."

"You're not hanging out with the others?"

Stiles felt like an idiot, but she really couldn't stop smiling by this point. And especially not when there was a rare, but hopeful hint in his tone. "Nah. Scott's busy, most of the others are working and Red annoyed the frig outta me, so I spaced it."

"'Spaced it'?"

Stiles chuckled lightly in amusement as she hoped in her precious Jeep, closing the door behind her. "Oh, right, sorry, grandpa." She smirked knowingly to herself when she heard him huff quietly. She could just imagine him scowling with those infamous and rather magnificent Hale trademark eyebrows of his right now. "It means that I left her bitchy, but irritatingly perfect ass back at Allison's." She explained simply.

"Oh. Right."

"So, um, you, uh, you KINDA miss me?" Stiles nibbled at her bottom lip nervously, feeling her cheeks heat up as she waited for his response.

"Yeah..." There was a slight paused before Derek finally did reply properly. "Yes, I miss you, Stiles. There. Are you happy now?"

It was grumble, but better than nothing and Stiles really couldn't help chuckling. She had a slight feeling that he may have been blushing, too, right now. "Well, I KINDA miss you, too, sourwolf." She chirped back brightly. And as she actually said the words, she realised just how much she really did. 'Ugh. What the hell? I only saw him like, 13 hours ago. God, I am SO in trouble...'

"You do?" It sounded like Derek didn't quite believe her. Though, there was still that slight hopeful hint lingering there.

Stiles scowled. "Well, yeah... Why? Is that... Bad?" And now she was just plain, old confused again. Did he not want her to miss him, too? Did he not really miss her in the first place? Did he just say that missed her, because that's what he thought she wanted to hear? Or did he --

"No." Derek replied a little too quickly, immediately breaking her out of her buzzing (and constantly doubting) thoughts. "No. I just... I'm glad... Surprised. But glad."

And now Stiles was smiling again. Seriously, she wondered if she was bi-polar sometimes. On top of all of her other stupid problems, that is. "Oh... Well... I really do..." Ugh. Just. Shoot. Me. NOW. Is what she kept thinking after that stupid, pathetic reply. "Hey, you wanna come be bored with me?" She chirped. "My dad's working. Ugh. Again. We could watch crappy movies and stuff our faces with some more icecream."

At that, Derek chuckled. "Sounds amazing." And even if he was teasing, he really did think that sounded amazing. Time alone with his mate. Hell, yes.

Stiles smirked, rolling her eyes to herself at his teasing tone. "You won't think so when I stuff you're pudgy, little werewolf belly so full of icecream that you puke for days." She threatened lightly.

Derek scoffed. "I'm not pudgy."

'No... No, you're REALLY fricking not... And now I'm thinking about his abs... Wonderful. Ugh, am I actually drooling? Gross.' Stiles quickly wiped the back of her hand across her mouth and then opened her it again to say words, noticing that she hadn't replied yet. And damn, stupid smartass Alpha werewolf probably knew exactly what he was doing to her. Mother-furry-fucker. "Just a LITTLE, maybe..." She teased all too quickly, then mentally cursing herself for it.

Derek let out a small, but defiant growl. "Oh, yeah?"

And holy crap! Stiles felt her skin crawl pleasantly at the sound of his lowered voice. "Pff. Alpha voice doesn't work on little ol' me, DER-BEAR." She scoffed back, trying to play it cool.

And again with the fricking growling, sourwolf. "No. But I know what DOES work on you..."

Stiles heart skipped about ten fricking beats. And just how the hell was she still alive after that!? "Promises, promises." Oh. My. God. Stop. Talking. 'God, what am I doing!? Why can't I stop!? Ugh!'

"You know that I always keep my promises, Bambi."

Stiles gulped silently, her free hand now gripping the steering-wheel so tightly that her knuckles turned white. 'Okay. Okay. Okay, I can do this.' "Y'know what? I just remembered, I'm busy, I have a thing." She chuckled, somewhat tauntingly when he let out another low growl. "I'll call you sometime, though. For sure."

"Stiles," He warned. "If you hang up on me right now, I will make you beg for mercy, the first chance I get."

Holy. Fucking. Shit. And what could Stiles say to that? What DID she say to say? And without even allowing herself to rethink her decision, she quickly replied. "You promise?" She replied all too sweetly. She chuckled again when, again, he growled and before he could respond this time, she quickly hung up. And then, if she pretended to be surprised when finding a certain werewolf already waiting for her at her front door, then so fricking what?


	66. Chapter 66

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I WAS a teenager once, too, y'know."

Stiles couldn't help smirking smugly to herself when she pulled into her driveway and immediately spotted the Alpha already standing by her front door. She arched a brow when she noticed his pretty, black Camaro was no where in sight. 'Wait a sec' -- how did he -- did he... Did he run here?' And now she REALLY couldn't help smirking smugly at that thought as she killed the engine and hopped out of her Jeep.

"I thought you said you were busy tonight." Derek stated, arching an expectant brow at her as he fought back a sly grin instead.

Stiles fought back her own grin as she sauntered casually passed him without a second glance and shoved her keys into the door lock. "Yeah, I am." She replied simply with a small shrug as she unlocked and opened her door. However, as she stepped foot inside her house, she suddenly felt familiar large, warm hands gently grabbing her around her waist. She let out a small, but surprised squeaking noise as he then pulled her back, her back pressing against his chest.

Derek smirked at the sound, wrapping his arms securely around her waist. "Oh, really? And what's more important than ME, exactly?" He mumbled, his nose gently prodding the spot under her ear as he breathed in her scent.

Stiles managed to keep cool (some-fucking-how) and even let out an amused (and rather unladylike) snort. "Oh, right, yeah -- I forgot how self-centred you Alphas really are." She taunted lightly. Though, she was being totally serious, as well.

"Well," Derek smirked. "It IS kinda hard for them not to be when the Betas practically kiss their asses all the damn time."

Stiles chuckled at that and slowly turned around in his warm embrace. She leaned forward, pressing herself against him as she wrapped her arms around his waist in return. She pressed her ear against his chest and hearing his heart beating just a little faster than hers. She smiled to herself when she felt one of his hands then leave her waist to run his fingers through her short, brown tufts of hair. 'Huh, I just realised that this is the first time we've actually ever hugged... Like properly hugged... Huh, weird...' She thought suddenly, causing her smile to widen and her arms to tighten slightly around him.

Derek let out a quiet, but content sigh as he rested his chin gently on top of her head. "I really did miss you." He mumbled, though, sounding slightly hesitant.

Stiles grinned, not caring at this point if he could hear her stupid heart racing and fluttering like a gay, little Butterfly. "I know." She chuckled to herself in amusement at her own joke.

Derek narrowed his eyes and let out a small huff. "Really, Stiles? A Star Wars reference? I suppose I shouldn't be all that surprised." He grumbled, shaking his head lightly. Though, he was totally fighting back an amused and somewhat smug smirk.

Stiles quickly pulled her head back to glance up at him with wide eyes. "What!?" She all, but snapped, looking somewhere between surprised and outraged. "Oh, my God! You, you... You -- what!?"

Derek rolled his eyes, but could no longer fight back his smirk. "I WAS a teenager once, too, y'know." He reminded, shooting her a slightly pointed, but playful glare. "Laura and I always used to have movie nights. She got me into a lot of them... And some of the others were kinda weird..." He scowled slightly to himself as a few of the memories of those rather disturbing horror movies Laura made him watch when he was a kid flashed briefly through his mind.

Stiles grinned excitedly. "You're sister was officially totally awesome! I hope you know that."

Derek chuckled at that. "Obviously." He nodded, wearing a smirk. "She was a Hale."

Stiles arched a brow, shooting him a rather unimpressed look.

Derek rolled his eyes, seeming to know just what she was thinking by the expression on her face -- her God, damn pretty face. He quickly spoke up before his thoughts got carried away. Again. "Peter is an unfortunate exception."

Stiles scoffed, though, she was smirking in amusement now. "Yeah. That's one way to put it."

Derek rolled his eyes again, fighting back another smile as he leaned down, finally placing his lips overs hers. And obviously, he fought very hard, but failed miserably to contain that smirk of his when he felt her fingernails practically clawing their way up his stomach and then his chest.

And sadly, before Stiles could let herself get too carried away, someone cleared their throat loudly behind them. Her eyes snapped wide open as soon as she recognised that familiar sound and instantly, she pulled herself completely away from the werewolf. "Dad!" Her heart began to race wildly, though, for a more terrifying reason this time around.

Derek mentally cursed himself for letting his senses become too distracted to even notice the Sheriff's fricking car pull up into the driveway. He quickly composed himself before turning around to face the older man. And to say that he was a little afraid right now would be a fricking lie. "Sheriff." He gave a curt nod and then simply waited for the shots to start firing his way.

John arched a brow at the werewolf, while fighting back the urge to burst out laughing. And he thought he was doing a good job, considering the looks on both their faces. Oh, it was fun to tease. 'No wonder Stiles is such a little shit sometimes; she takes after her old man.' He thought fondly, his lips almost cracking into a smirk. Almost. "Am I interrupting something here?" He asked, his voice calm, too calm.

Stiles gulped silently, her heart still feeling as though it was beating out of her damn chest. She REALLY didn't want her father to shoot sourwolf in the face right now. Or ever, for that matter. "Uh, n-no. No. Nope." She shook her head, mentally slapping herself as her cheeks flushed unbearably.

John arched his brow over at his daughter instead.

"Uh, how come you're home early, anyway?" Stiles asked, shooting him a curious look. "I mean, not that I'm not happy about it, obviously..." She added quickly, smiling sheepishly.

Derek stood silently, fighting back the urge to smile in amusement now and mentally cursing his mate for making him do so. 'Fuck. Pull it together or I'm gonna end up getting shot... AGAIN.' He tightened his jaw at that thought, forcing himself to stay collected.

John shrugged lazily. "Finally solved that Pollack case. Thought I'd come home and spend some time with my daughter." He stated with a pointed look.

"Oh, right." Stiles nodded. "Sounds great." She chirped with another sheepish smile.

"I'll call you later?" Derek glanced over to her, shooting her an understanding look.

Stiles smiled gratefully and nodded. "Yeah... I'd like that." She mumbled, hopelessly blushing once again.

Derek fought back another smug smirk in her father's presence and instead settled with a small smile and a nod in response.

John rolled his eyes, unable to fight back his own smirk any longer. "Say, Derek," He piped up. He went on when the werewolf turned to him with a curious expression. "How about you join us for dinner?"

"What?" Stiles asked, her eyes widened in surprise and slight horror. 'God, maybe I should just let him shoot Derek in the foot or something and just get this shit over with... He'd heal... It's all good...' She mentally scalded herself at that thought. 'What am I saying? I can't let him shoot sourwolf. Ugh... I'm so fu --'

"I mean, if you've got nothing better to do." John added, shooting the werewolf an actual sincere look.

Derek glanced briefly at Stiles, who was glaring at her father and felt his lips twitch slightly as he turned back to the Sheriff. "Sure." He nodded, shooting the older man a small, but grateful smile.

"What?" Stiles asked, now glaring over at the Alpha, who was smirking slightly, while blatantly avoiding any attempts to actually look at her. 'That mother-furry-fucking traitor. He WILL pay for this!'

John grinned eagerly, completely oblivious. "Good." He nodded, clearly pleased with the werewolf's answer. "Stiles can whip up some steaks instead of that so-called healthy crap she always tries to make me eat."

Derek chuckled lightly. "Sounds good."

"Oh, it does?" Stiles arched a brow at him before glaring at her father. "Fine." She sighed loudly in defeat. "On one condition,"

John arched a curious brow. "Oh?"

"That you don't fricking embarrass me or shoot Derek. Please." Stiles gave him her best puppy eyes, having taken recent lessons from Scott -- seriously, the dude was a dangerous kind of adorable when he pouted or gave his infamous puppy eyes to anyone. Especially her. Though, not so much his own mother. And now Stiles was thinking that maybe she should be taking lessons from Melissa, too. It could come in handy. Especially if a miracle such as sourwolf ever giving her puppy eyes, (not that it would ever happen) because holy fuck, if it ever did -- but still, a girl could dream.

Derek arched a brow, fighting back another smirk.

John chuckled. "Oh, come on! Like I'd shoot Derek."

Stiles shot him a clearly disbelieving look...

...Scott huffed as he stalked lazily into his kitchen and placed the three empty plates and sets of cutlery into the sink. He took a moment to collect himself before finally stalking back into the dining room and sitting back down at his place at the dinner table, beside his mother.

"So, Scott," Rafael McCall -- Scott's ("so-called") father piped up. "Are you dating anyone at the moment?" He asked.

"Yes." Scott answered simply.

Melissa arched her brow, shooting him a stern look.

Scott rolled his eyes, but managed to do as he was told. For his mother. And for Allison. No one else. "Her name's Allison Argent. I'm sure you know her and her dad; Chris." He arched a brow, shooting him a knowing look.

Rafael nodded. "Yeah. Uh, that's, I'm glad. I mean, as long as you're happy."

Scott scoffed at that, unable to help himself.

"Scott, I know he's a screw-up, but he's trying." Melissa piped up finally, her voice soft and calming. She knew her son had good control over his werewolf abilities, but she was still wary. She knew that his father was a sore subject for him. And she didn't blame him one bit. She blamed herself. Rafael, mostly. But herself a little, too.

Scott glared at the older man as he replied to his mother. "Yeah, well, he's gonna have to try a lot harder before I ever consider calling this stranger my father."

Rafael sighed, his throat aching slightly. "Scott, please --"

"How do I know that you're not just up and leave us again the second it gets too much for you, huh!?" Scott snapped, his glare darkening slightly. Though, his chest was beginning to ache slightly, too. And now, God, damn it, he was fighting back the overwhelming and stupid urge to cry like a little bitch. Well, he decided that was not going to happen. Ever. He would never shed a tear on this asshole. And that was that, as far as he was concerned.

Rafael sat silently, his throat aching too much now to even begin to respond to that outburst. Yes, he was a screw-up. And he knew that.

Melissa glanced briefly at her ex-husband's incredibly hurt expression before glancing back to her son's distraught expression. Her chest clenched unbearably as she fought the urge to run to her baby and hug him tightly.

Scott scoffed loudly at the older man's silence, shaking his head. "Y'know what, I'm not in the mood for dessert anymore." He huffed, quickly pushing his chair back and rising to his feet again.

"Scott," Rafael tried again and again, he was shut down completely.

"Thanks for dinner, mom. It was delicious as always." Scott mumbled, placing a kiss to her forehead before stalking straight towards the front door.


	67. Chapter 67

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I can strongly believe that."

Stiles huffed in annoyance to herself as she began to route around her fridge and hauled out a few of the beef steaks from the bottom shelf. She glanced over her shoulder at her father and sourwolf, who were both sitting at the breakfast table with a beer in their hands. "Okay, I like my steak burnt to a crisp, dad -- medium rare?" She glanced over to the werewolf when her father nodded. "And you, Derek?" She smirked slightly in amusement.

Derek rolled his eyes, but couldn't help smirking back a little. "Medium rare is fine."

"Huh, and here I was thinking I wouldn't need to cook the third for our werewolf guest." Stiles teased, grinning when the Alpha shot her a playful glare. As she began to prepare their dinner, she made sure to listen to their conversation, not caring that they probably knew she was anyway. She smirked to herself, her back facing the males as she listened.

"So, Derek,"

Stiles rolled her eyes to herself -- because of course it would be her father to start up the conversation -- as her smirked slowly widened.

"You like any sports?"

Stiles arched her brow, surprised by the question.

Derek offered a small, but polite smile and nodded. "Uh, yeah. I actually used to play a lot of basketball back in high school." He explained. "Though, these days I barely have time to watch sports, let alone play."

John nodded, clearly understanding that. "Yeah, I know how THAT is. I, myself, barely even have time for Stiles." He stated with a small, but obviously troubled expression.

"Ah, it's cool, pops." Stiles shot her father a bright grin over her shoulder. "Besides, I get into enough trouble on a daily basis to land me back in the Sheriff's office."

John shot her a playful glare. "Yeah. And don't I know it?" He scoffed lightly, glancing back to the werewolf. "Y'know, I don't think there's been a day since Stiles was born where she DIDN'T land herself in trouble."

Derek chuckled lightly at that and smirked smugly over at his mate when she shot him a pitiful glare over her shoulder. "I can strongly believe that."

"Hey!" Stiles barked, now turning around to glare at the both of them. "I was a perfect child until I met McCall." She stated snootily.

John scoffed loudly at that. "I think we BOTH know that it's the other way there around, kiddo." He stated pointedly, raising a brow.

Stiles narrowed her eyes at her so-called father.

Derek smirked, clearly amused. "And again; I can strongly believe that."

Stiles turned her narrowed orbs onto her so-called boyfriend -- or mate, or whatever the hell he was! "Whose side are you on?"

Derek shrugged, wearing an all too casual look as he took a small sip from his beer bottle. "I'm just saying..." He mumbled innocently.

To which, Stiles scoffed loudly -- sounding disturbingly like her father, Derek thought. "Do you want me to burn your food?" She asked, fighting back the urge to smirk when he scowled back at her. "Didn't think so." She chirped brightly before turning around back to the counter...

...John groaned inwardly as he placed his knife and fork onto his empty plate and leaned back in his chair to give his full belly some more room.

Stiles smiled in amusement. "Did you enjoy that, dad?" She teased, arching a brow at him.

John grinned lazily over at his daughter and nodded, clearly pleased. "Oh, yeah." He chirped. "Thanks, Gammy." He mumbled rather sleepily, not even realising he had said it.

Stiles bright expression faltered, but only for a split second as she quickly remembered the werewolf sitting beside her. Not that it matter, though, because she knew he had probably heard her heart skip several beats before racing harshly. She ignored the heat of the Alpha's gaze as she immediately slapped on her usual bright smile. "No worries, pops." She chimed back before rising from her seat to collect their empty plates.

Derek stared after her, feeling slightly concerned now. He felt the wolf inside him practically whining when he began to smell the subtle hints of his mate's misery wafting from the kitchen to the dining room.

"Well, I'd love to stay up, but I am absolutely wiped." John shot the werewolf an apologetic smile. "Sorry to be a buzzkill." He added as he slowly hauled himself out of his own seat.

Derek forced a polite smile, still distracted. "It's fine." He said simply, shooting the exhausted Sheriff an understanding look.

John gave a curt nod, wearing a sleepy grin. "Oh, and just one thing; you hurt ever my daughter -- physically OR emotionally -- I'll shoot you until that werewolf healing of yours can't help you any longer."

And just how the heck had this become Derek's life? Threatened by a mere human and feeling actually kind of fucking threatened right now. He didn't doubt the man's words for one second, but that wasn't the problem. The problem was that Derek would probably let him do it if he ever DID find himself in such a situation.

John's serious expression suddenly brightened. "But otherwise, you both have my blessing." He chimed with a grin.

Derek let out a breath he didn't even realise he had been fricking holding and barely managed to nod in response.

"Oh, and, uh, no, uh," John wrinkled his nose slightly, looking rather uncomfortable now. "And no monkey -- or should I say; 'wolfy'? -- business until she's at least 18."

And now Derek could feel his cheeks heating up immensely. He was just so fricking glad that the man was at least thoughtful enough to say all this without Stiles hearing it, too. And again, he barely managed to nod. Though, this time, he also managed to say actual words. Finally. "Uh, yeah..." He mentally cursed himself. 'Pull it to-fucking-gether, Hale!' He cleared his throat quietly before starting again. "Sir, John," He gave the man the sincerest look he could muster up without looking like he was just trying to fucking kiss ass. He wasn't just some little, bitch, teenage boy, okay!? He was a fricking adult! "I know all of this might seem kinda weird, seeing as Stiles and I have never really gotten along all that well," He tried to explain, minus the parts about the Sheriff's daughter being his mate (because that would surely get him shot). "But I was just trying to protect her, as stupid as that sounds with the furry company she constantly likes to keep." He smirked slightly when the Sheriff chuckled at that. "Anyway, I just, I need you to know that I would never intentionally hurt Stiles. As annoying as she is; she's kinda grown on me," He smiled slightly. "And I really do care about her."

John grinned and nodded. "Well, I knew THAT already. Both about Stiles being annoying and you caring about her..."

...While Stiles had been washing the dirty dishes, she had been crying without even noticing. After she was done, she finally realised and turned the tap back on to wash her face quickly. As her thoughts began to drift back to her mother, she was quickly snapped out of it by her phone vibrating silently against her thigh. She quickly dried her hands on to kitchen towel and reached for her phone. She frowned slightly before answering. "Hey, Scott. What's up?" She asked, forcing herself to sound cheery.

And as predicted, he could see right through her. Even when he couldn't see her. "What's wrong? You sound upset."

Stiles mentally cursed, her mind then clicking as she realised the tone of her best friend's voice in return. "You, too." She offered pathetically, quickly clearing her throat. "You called me for a reason -- what's up? Is it your dad?" She asked in equal concern.

Scott sighed, only confirming her answer before he even replied. "Lucky guess." He joked half-heartedly.

Stiles chuckled softly. "Come on, Scotty, talk to me, brother."

"Okay. But can I come over? I really don't wanna go home yet."

Stiles felt her heart melt slightly at the desperate tone of his voice. "Sure, yeah. Of course. I think my dad's gone to bed already. And uh, Derek's here, too. If that's okay? I mean, I'm not asking your permission to have a boyfriend, because screw you. I just meant that if it's really important, I can ask him to leave so we can talk." And why? Why did no ever stop her talking? Most people found her constant babbling annoying. So it just confused the hell out of her as to why they didn't just tell her to shut the hell up. At least every once in a while.

Scott chuckled lightly, clearly perking up from amusement. "No, it's okay, you don't need to do that. I mean, not like Derek gives a rats ass about my lame, old human problems."

Stiles smirked, knowing that was probably very true. "Ah, that's okay, Scotty -- I still give a rats ass. Come on over and we can have icecream!" She grinned wickedly. "I know sourwolf is probably rudely listening in on us right now, but seriously, Scott, the dude has a sweet fang!"

To which, Scott really couldn't help, but burst out laughing. And this, this was why Stiles was his best fucking friend forever. "Oh-ho, oh, my God! Dude! He's seriously gonna make you pay for telling me that!"

And Stiles would have chuckled at that, too, though, she found herself shivering slightly as her thoughts briefly flashed the last time sourwolf had promised to make her "pay."


	68. Chapter 68

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I'm officially scarred for life now."

Stiles shoved her phone back into her pocket before turning around to head back to the living room. That was, at least, until she swirled around, only to see sourwolf standing right in front of her. She let out a little squeal of surprise, her eyes half widened. "Jesus! Derek!" She scalded him, her hand resting over her racing heart.

"Sorry." Derek mumbled. And he actually looked like he meant it, for once.

Stiles heart then began to race for a whole other reason when she realised that by the troubled look on his face, he had probably heard her crying. At this, she mentally cursed at his stupid heightened senses. However, she chose to play it cool, pretending like nothing was wrong; like she always did (especially when things got a little too much for her -- emotionally, anyway). "It's fine. I suppose I should be used to you wolves and your incredible Ninja skills by now." She stated with a small grin.

And even if Derek was still rather concerned over her, he couldn't help smiling slightly in amusement at that. 'Damn, Stilinski. What've you done to me?' He thought, though, with half-hearted annoyance. "Are you okay?" He couldn't help asking. It was almost like a reflex for him now.

Stiles slapped on a wide and bright grin, not caring if he didn't believe her. Not right now, anyway. She could deal with her own shit later. But first, her best friend; her brother needed her. "I'm always okay." She retorted, using his own words against him with a pointed and rather smug look on her face. Her annoying, pretty face. Ugh.

Derek rolled his eyes at that, though, he still couldn't help smirking slightly. 'Okay. Yeah. I guess I deserved that.'

"So, I'm guessing you heard me talking to Scotty? You little wolfwig, you." Stiles commented with a teasing grin. Just, anything to keep the focus off of her little washing-up meltdown not, but all of five minutes ago.

Derek nodded in response, though, he looked slightly confused now. "What the hell is a 'wolfwig'?" He arched a brow, wrinkling his nose slightly and Stiles thought it was probably the most adorable look she had ever seen on his face. His annoyingly handsome face. Ugh.

Stiles barely managed to ignore the flutter of her heart. She shrugged as if it should have been that simple to him as it was to her (yeah, right!) "Y'know, like earwig?" She grinned in amusement when sourwolf's expression finally shone with realisation.

"Oh. Right." Derek wrinkled his nose again. "Gross."

Stiles chuckled lightly. "Anyway," She went on, deciding not to embarrass -- or rather "gross" him out -- any further. "I hope you don't mind if Scott crashes here for a little while."

"Of course not." Derek nodded, giving her a look of understanding. "He's your brother. I get it."

Stiles offered her brightest, grateful smile. "Cool."

"I can leave, if you need me to. If you two need time." Derek stated, trying not to sound as disappointed as he felt. 'Fuck. Always with the fucking interruptions.' Yes, he understood that Scott needed her the most right now, but he still couldn't help feeling slightly pissed off, too.

Stiles frowned lightly. "No, you don't have to. Scott doesn't really care either way." She mentally cursed herself for replying a little too quickly. "I mean, unless you've got other stuff going on..." She trailed off in her little mumble with an all too casual shrug of her shoulders. And again with the mental cursing of herself as she felt her cheeks rush with heat and quickly averted her nervous gaze from his ever intense one. 'Stupid werewolf.'

Derek smirked to himself as he slowly shuffled closer to her until he was standing right in front of her, his head towering at least a foot over her own. His hands reached for her waist, slowly dragging her closer to him and he smirked smugly down at her when his movement made her look back up at him. And so fricking what if he used his keen Alpha ears to listen to her pulse rise with every touch he sent her -- no matter how minor?

"Ugh. Don't even think about, sourwolf." Stiles mumbled, glaring rather pathetically up at him. "Scott will be here any minute now." She reminded. Also a rather pathetic attempt.

Derek's smirk only widened as he quickly reached down and stole a quick, but sweet kiss from her lips before she could even think about reacting. "So? I'll hear him before he even pulls up to your driveway. Wolfwig here, remember?" He mumbled back, grinning in amusement when she shot him another useless glare. He ignored her adorable pouting and leaned down for another, longer kiss.

"Ugh. Derek." Stiles half whined, half grumbled against his lips as she felt his hands slide down her hips and around to give her ass a little squeeze. And then she was mentally cursing herself once again when she felt her arms move of their own accord to wrap tightly around his neck.

Derek smirked against her lips, almost letting a loud groan slip as she pressed her body as closely to his as was humanly fricking possible. Almost. He still remembered -- in the back of his mind, anyway -- that her father was sleeping just twenty feet away from them. And while he didn't want to get shot again, he also wanted to respect the man by not taking advantage of his thankful blessing. Although, Scott walking in on them, he didn't really give a shit about. Besides, he had overheard Stiles telling Lydia about her walking in on Scott and Allison on more than one occasion. So, "oh, well!" if he pretended not to hear Scott's motorcycle pulling up in her driveway right now. Derek smirked again as he thought: 'Payback's a bitch.' And if it was also because Stiles tasted just a little too fucking sweet to stop right now, then so fucking what!? It wasn't even his fault. Well, okay, it was. But it was her fault, too!

Stiles knew she should have probably stopped before --

"Hey! Stiles and Der -- EWWWW! Oh, my fricking God! Stop! Right now! PLEASE! I can hear the smacking of the lips! Ugh!"

Stiles practically tore herself away from sourwolf with a loud gasp, her eyes widened in mortification. "Oh, my fucking God, kill me right now." She mumbled under her breath, not caring for a second if the idiot werewolves could hear her loud and clear. First her father. And now her best fucking friend forever. Ugh. She suddenly turned her gaze to sourwolf, who was smirking in amusement like the smug and furry shithead he was. Her eyes narrowed, her gaze darkening as she shot him a glare, while trying to ignore her flaming cheeks and racing heart. "You did this on purpose." She hissed her accusation, shooting him another pathetic glare.

"Ugh. Obviously." Scott grumbled, closing the front door behind him. "Thanks, Derek. Really. I'm officially scarred for life now." He chirped sarcastically, while shooting the older werewolf a glare of his own.

Derek simply shrugged casually in response, still smirking rather proudly to himself.

"Sorry, dude..." Stiles mumbled, her cheeks heating up even fricking more.

"Meh." Scott waved his hand, clearly wanting to forget the entire thing. "Besides, I guess we're even now..." He added with a sheepish grin.

Stiles glared at him for that. "Oh, really? We are? Is that what you think?" She asked seriously, arching both her brows at him now. "'Cause I've seen both your's and Allison's ass cracks now more times than I've seen fricking Star Wars!" She barked, shooting him a pointed look.

Derek smirked quietly to himself as he witnessed the younger Alpha's cheeks quickly turning pink.

"Anyway, enough about ass cracks." Stiles announced, her expression suddenly brightening up. "I'll fetch the icecream, put on a crappy movie and YOU can talk MY ears off for a change."

Scott chuckled at that and nodded. "Yeah. Sounds good."

"Alrighty!" Stiles grinned back at him. "Go sit your furry asses down and I'll go fetch the sugary goodness."

Scott rolled his eyes, giving her a playful, little shove as he passed her. He shuffled over to the couch, plopping lazily down.

"Well, he smells absolutely miserable." Derek chirped. "I should go. You should be there for him."

Stiles frowned slightly, but before her mind began to race with uncertainty, she felt one of his hands reach for one of her own.

"Check your phone when I leave." Derek shot her a small smirk before reaching down and placing one last quick kiss to her lips.

Stiles simply nodded, unable to do much else as her heart raced and then he shot her one last smile before sauntering towards the front door.

"Later, Scotty." Derek shot the younger werewolf a taunting smirk.

"Screw you, Hale." Scott replied casually without even bothering to look up from his slump on the couch.

"Gay." Derek mumbled, grinning to himself as he slipped silently out of the house, finally leaving the best friends alone.

"Pff. YOU'RE gay." Scott grumbled pathetically after the older Alpha, knowing he would hear. And he did, if Scott hearing him chuckle quietly from a distance was anything to go by.

Stiles rolled her eyes, smirking to herself before shuffling over to him. "Move it, bitch." She chirped, grinning when he glared at her as she shoved his legs off of the couch and plopped down beside him. "So? Are you gonna tell me what's wrong or am I gonna have to slap it outta you?" She asked calmly, though, glancing expectantly over at him.

Scott let out a loud and frustrated huff before responding. "He's just a dick!"

Stiles arched her brows, staring calmly at him still. "Okay..." She trailed off deliberately, urging him to continue. To just let him vent it all out.

"He's a selfish dick, who thinks that he can just show up after all these years and pretending that everything's okay!" Scott glared to himself as continued with his rant. "And if he thinks he can just worm his way back into my life, he think the fuck again!" He growled slightly, his hands balled into tight fists.

"Dude, your eyes." Stiles placed a comforting hand on his shoulder as she noticed his orbs flickering back and forth from brown to red a few times. "It's okay."

"No, it's not." Scott mumbled brokenly, his eyes shining with tears. He sighed, sounding somewhat defeat. "I know I said that it doesn't bother me, but it does... I think about what happened to your mom sometimes --"

Stiles felt her heart stutter, her chest clenching painfully. But she didn't say a word.

"She was taken from you, and it sucks and it's not fair. And sometimes... I even used to pretend that he was dead... And it made me feel better. Not a lot, but... It made it easier to deal with the fact that'd I'd probably never see him again." Scott huffed, feeling his throat aching unbearably and he sunk further back into the couch with a look of utter misery.

"Um, I'm gonna," Stiles slowly hauled herself back up onto her feet. "I'm gonna fetch the sugary goodness." She mumbled, forcing a smile before shuffling quickly back towards the kitchen. She reached for the fridge, but froze when her phone suddenly vibrated in her pocket. She quickly reached for it, already knowing who it was, but found herself smiling slightly anyway as she glanced at the screen before reading the message.

From Sourwolf --  
'Hey, Bambi. :)  
How about that second date I promised you? Tomorrow? 8:30?'


	69. Chapter 69

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "But he still acts like a boring, old man... Y'know... When he's NOT punching something... Or someone... OR shoving his tongue down your throat..."

To Sourwolf --  
'Hmm. I'll have to check my diary, but I THINK I may just have time for. ;)'

Stiles grinned to herself as she sent the text message. She could imagine sourwolf probably growling to himself once he had read her reply. She quickly grabbed the tub of strawberry and vanilla icecream, grabbing two table spoons before shuffled lazily back into the living room.

"Hey, uh, I'm sorry," Scott piped up upon her return, wearing a rather sheepish look. "For bringing your mom up, I mean." He elaborated when she shot him a look of confusion.

Stiles slapped on another bright smile as she plopped lazily down beside him. "It's cool, dude. You're upset. Don't worry about it." She chirped, handing him one of the spoons before ripping the lid off and tossing it onto the coffee table.

Scott simply nodded, though, he wasn't entirely convinced. She smelled almost as miserable as he felt right now.

"So, you talked to your mom about this?" Stiles asked, eyeing him carefully as they both began to dig into the icecream.

Scott shrugged lazily. "No." He all, but grunted as he shoved a large spoonful into his mouth, swallowing it all without even flinching.

Stiles rolled her eyes. "Why does that NOT surprise me?" She retorted sarcastically.

"She wants me to give him a chance. Pff!" Scott explained simply with a roll of his eyes as he reached for another spoonful.

"Dude, slow the fuck down or it's gonna be gone! And I WILL kick your furry ass!" Stiles hissed, narrowing her eyes at him.

Scott rolled his eyes, unable to help grinning as he reached for a smaller spoonful. Though, only fricking slightly smaller. "I need it." He whined, shooting her that infamous stupid puppy jaw and stupid puppy eyes pout of his.

Stiles shot him a clearly unimpressed look. "Who ARE you? Bridget Jones now? Do you need me to buss out another tampon for you?" She asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm, as usual.

Scott wrinkled his nose in disgust.

"Dude, wolf the fuck up already." Stiles scalded him. "You're a fricking True Alpha, here! You kick ass on a daily basis with any creature that ever crosses you. Every difficult situation I've ever seen you step into, you always manage to come out the other side with your head held high. You protect the people of Beacon Hills, with the help of your awesome friends, of course." She grinned. "You don't even realise it, but you're a fricking hero, Scott." She shot him a bright, affectionate smile. "You're MY hero, anyway. You're my fricking brother. Forever. No matter what."

Scott stared back at her for a few moments, his throat clenching painfully at her words, but so beautifully that he almost choked on his own saliva. "No matter what?" He managed to mumble out, his voice barely audible.

Stiles grinned and nodded. "Duh! And you're an adult... Well, sorta." She shot him a pointed look. "Now shut up and eat icecream." She scalded contradictingly.

Scott chuckled quietly, shaking his head before scooping out some more sugary goodness...

...Cora smiled all too sweetly as her brother stalked back into the loft. "And where have YOU been?" She asked, wearing a small, but clearly teasing grin.

Derek rolled his eyes. "Like you don't already know." He mumbled, shrugging his leather jacket off and tossing it to the table before taking a seat on the couch beside her.

"Oh, I know." Cora chuckled lightly. "I just wanna know the details."

Derek shot her a glare. "We didn't have sex. So stop asking." He grunted, mentally cursing himself as he felt his cheeks burn slightly.

Cora's expression lit up instantly. "Whoa! Who's talking about sex?"

Again, Derek shot her a pointed glare.

Cora rolled her eyes. "I just wanna know when you're gonna tell her how you actually feel about her. And I think you should probably do it sooner rather than later."

Derek narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze reading the she wolf's expression carefully. "What'd you know?"

"What? Nothing." Cora shrugged casually, her heartbeat not even fluttering once.

Derek wasn't convinced. He knew his little sister, he knew how, like Peter, she was always calm and collected, and sneaky. "Cora," His tone held slightly warning as he scalded her. "You've got 5 seconds to tell me what you know." And now he was threatening her, no doubt.

Cora merely scoffed at his attempt. "Look, I don't KNOW anything." She explained. "I just," She sighed loudly. She just didn't want to upset him. He seemed to happy lately. Like the brother she once knew and loved; before that fucking fire. "Isaac told me all about what happened with Stiles last year, the Nogitsune."

Derek gulped silently, averting his gaze from hers. He hadn't thought about that in a long time now, on purpose, of course. Just another fricking day where his mate had almost died.

"He also told me about told me about how she has her mother's illness --"

Derek glared at her, wanting to rip Isaac's throat out in that moment. "Stiles is fine now. The possession triggered all of that, but it's over now." He stated, his tone firm and final.

"Is she?" Cora asked, glaring defiantly back at him. "Maybe for now. But what if it doesn't last?"

Derek simply continued to glare back at her. "What's your point, Cora?" He asked, his voice dangerously low now.

Cora sighed quietly in defeat before answering. "Turn her."

Derek chuckled bitterly, shaking his head at his little sister. "Y'know, you sound just like Peter." He chided. "You DO know what happened to the first girl I ever cared about died from me making that same, stupid decision, right? Or did that slip your memory somehow?" He asked, still glaring at her.

Cora rolled her eyes with a frustrated little huff. "It was just a suggestion. I just saying --"

"Well don't." Derek snapped. "Because it's never gonna happen. EVER." He shot her one last pointed glare before rising from his seat and storming off towards the spiral staircase...

..After the two best friends had literally eaten the tub of icecream clean, Scott rang his mother to let her know where he was and that he probably wouldn't be returning home tonight, while Stiles cleared away their little mess and fetched a large, unopened packet of chocolate chip cookies instead before switching the TV on and plopping down beside the werewolf again.

"Ooo! Cookies!" Scott chimed with a happy grin as he made rather pathetic grabbing motions with his hands.

Stiles arched a brow at him, looking somewhere between amused and slightly horrified. "Is that how you ask for boob, too?" She asked sarcastically, though, grinning, too.

Scott rolled his eyes and scoffed lightly. "Why? Is that how Der-Bear asks?" He mumbled under his breath, though, just loud enough for her to hear.

"What!?" Stiles gaped at him, her mouth slightly ajar and her eyes widened.

Scott chuckled, now grinning in amusement instead.

"Allison." Stiles seethed under her breath, her eyes narrowing into the distance.

Scott smirked. "Yep. Girls talk, alright."

"Oh, my fucking God." Stiles mumbled, her cheeks flushing heavily.

"I can't say I'm too thrilled about him feeling my bro up, 'cause I still kinda think he's an asshat." Scott said with a slight scowl.

"Oh, please, dude, stop, just stop talking." Stiles begged, her eyes pleading with him.

Scott smirked smugly. "Look, all I'm trying to say here is that if you're happy, then I'm happy, too." He stated with the utmost sincerity.

Stiles was still blushing madly, but somehow she managed to offer a small, but grateful smile in return. "Um... Thanks?"

Scott chuckled. "As much as you deserve payback for all those times you made fun of me over Allison -- I REALLY don't wanna think about Derek getting his swerve on... With anyone... Ever."

Stiles glared at him. "Can you PLEASE stop talking?" And it was less of a request this time, and more of a warning.

Scott's smirk only widened. "What?" He shrugged all too casually. "The dude's kinda old."

And again, Stiles glared at him. "Hey! He's only like, 6 years older than us."

"Okay. True." Scott nodded, though, he was still smirking. "But he still acts like a boring, old man... Y'know... When he's NOT punching something... Or someone... OR shoving his tongue down your throat..."

"Ugh! Scott! Shut up!" Stiles groaned, still blushing like a madwoman. There was surely going to be a death tonight... Preferably Scott's.


	70. Chapter 70

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "He's not my boyfriend..."

From Sourwolf --  
'Sorry, Bambi, I wasn't ignoring you -- because let's face the facts here; you make it impossible for anyone to ignore you. Ever. It's endearing as it is annoying. ;)  
Anyway, Cora was annoying the crap out of me. No difference there, really. Although, it's usually Peter who's the usual suspect...'

Stiles smirked in amusement to herself as she quickly replied. She could just imagine the sourwolf scowling that infamous (sexy) scowl of his to himself at that last sentence as she typed away as subtly as she possibly could.

To Sourwolf --  
'"I can strongly believe that." :p  
Although, when AREN'T you annoyed? ;)  
And hey, annoying? Endearing? Yep. That sounds like me, alright. Except, you left out 'adorable'. Duh. :)'

"And who are you texting right now -- may I ask?" Scott piped up suddenly, chuckling in amusement when she jumped slightly at the sound of his voice.

Stiles quickly calmed her racing pulse and glared at him as she shoved her phone back into her pocket. "You may NOT. Furry, little Nosey-Nora, that you are. You're almost as bad as Lydia, seriously, dude." She shot him a stern, pointed look. "Anyway, like you don't already know... Stupid, werepuppy jaw jackass..." She grumbled, settling back into the couch and then proceeding to scowl at the TV instead.

Scott chuckled quietly, shaking his head to himself in amusement. "Anything to change the topic, huh?" He teased with a small, but annoyingly adorable grin.

"Tonight, before you walked in on us -- well, y'know, uh, kissing," Stiles flushed heavily as she spoke.

"More like 'groping' one another -- but go on." Scott cut in casually, though, with a slight wrinkle of his nose and a somewhat mischievous glint in his dark chocolate orbs.

Stiles shot him another glare, trying to ignore her flaming cheeks as she carried on as if she hadn't been (rudely) interrupted. "Anyway, uh... My dad kinda caught us kissing, too. And on the fricking front porch. My God, it was SO awkward." She told him, her face flushing even fricking more.

Scott's expression instantly lit up in pure amusement at that. "Oh-ho, my-ha, God! That is just too perfect." He choked out through his chuckles. "You have officially turned one of the emotionally worst nights of my life into one of the best now. See? THIS is why you're my bro for life."

Stiles rolled her eyes, still blushing like crazy. Though, she couldn't help, but smile. "Well, at least something good came out of my total mortification tonight. So... You're welcome, I suppose." She chimed all too sarcastically, though, also smiling all too sweetly.

Scott grinned, clearly entertained. "Well, what'd happened?" He asked all to eagerly, his eyes lit up in suspense. "Can Derek now add the Sheriff to his list of people who've shot him?" He chirped a little too happily.

Stiles narrowed her eyes at him. "No, actually." She replied, her tone rather snooty just as she felt her phone vibrate twice in her pocket again. "Both my dad and Derek seemed to be having a wonderful, little giggle-shit-fit at my fricking expense. Ugh. He invited Derek in for dinner... Which I cooked."

"No way." Scott arched both brows, looking beyond surprised. "Huh. He always made me promise to keep the boys away from you. Since like, forever." He stated thoughtfully.

Stiles merely rolled her eyes at that. "Yeah, well, he seemed pretty happened while he was chatting away with Derek."

"But... This is good... Right?" Scott shot her a look somehow somewhere between reassuring and still slightly questioning. "I mean, the part about your dad NOT shooting your werewolf boyfriend."

"Wha -- he's not --" Stiles spluttered over her words slightly, her cheeks flushing heavily once again. "He's not my boyfriend..." She mumbled quietly, knowing he could still damn well hear. Stupid heightened werewolf senses.

Scott scoff loudly, clearly not believing a single word. "Please. I don't need to listen to your heartbeat, dude. And I don't need Allison or anybody else to tell me what I already know." He shot her a pointed look. "And I know you. And I know that happy smile of yours has always been just a mask to hide the real the pain you're in. And you've gotten real good at it over the years -- ever since what happened to your mom. But I can see that Derek makes you happy; he makes you smile; real smiles. And he seems unusually happier since he's finally pulled his head out of his ass by asking you out." He gulped slightly, not wanting to upset her again, but he needed to know. "I just... Can I ask you one thing? And then, I promise, I'll never bring it up again." He said, looking a little uncertain as he did.

Stiles arched a brow, shooting him an intrigued look now. She nodded, staying quiet to let him ask his question.

"When you first found out that your mom has died -- what was the very first thing you wanted to do?" Scott asked warily.

"Y'mean, BESIDES cry like a little bitch?" Stiles half joked, forcing on a small smile to lighten the mood.

Scott forced on a small smile of his own as he simply nodded and waited for her to answer.

Stiles sighed tiredly as she replied. "I wanted to hear her voice." She smiled lightly to herself. "Whenever I was away from her for too long, I used to just call her up just to listen to the sound of her voice and it would always make me feel better."

Scott smiled faintly and nodded. "I remember."

Stiles somehow managed to hold it altogether this time as she went on. "Dad never talks about her... Like, ever." She told him, looking slightly concerned.

Scott sighed quietly and nodded again. "I guess I can understand that. Can't you?" He asked gently, shooting her a pointed look.

Stiles nodded. "Yeah, I guess..." She mumbled. "I know he doesn't blame me for what happened to her or anything like that, but... It's like, when he looks at me, all he can see is her face looking back at him... Even now, still -- sometimes I catch him looking at me and I can see the misery in his eyes and it just... It just makes me feel like complete shit."

Scott frowned slightly. "Y'know, my mom told me what happened last year -- y'know, during the whole possession thing," He stated, his voice slightly wary. "She told me that you called her 'mom'."

Stiles felt her face flush heavily for the millionth time tonight. "Oh. Yeah. Sorry." She mumbled, averting her gaze quickly from his.

Scott smiled fondly as he reached forward, grabbing one of her smaller hands in his own, causing her to glance back up at him. "Don't be. You're my bro for life, remember?"

Stiles smiled weakly and nodded as she squeezed his large, warm hand for comfort.

"So, does that mean I get to call John 'dad' finally?" Scott asked with an amused grin as he leaned back into the couch, kicking his Converse off before flinging his feet into her lap with a cheeky smirk.

Stiles glared at his slightly stinky (and thankfully socked) feet, but decided to let it slide. Well, just this once, anyway. "You do anyway, dude." She stated with a pointed look before finally opening the newest text message on her phone.

"Yeah, but I meant officially." Scott stated, smirking to himself as he watched her.

"Uh-huh. Sure. Whatever, dude. Do whatever you want." Stiles mumbled, clearly distracted as she read over the text.

"Cool." Scott chirped simply, still smirking as he continued to watch her expression carefully (and obviously totally listen in on her pulse at the same time) for his own entertainment. Besides, he had never seen Stiles act so fricking girly, let alone even like someone in a romantic way. So, yeah. This was just too rare and amazing for him to even think about missing any second of.

From Sourwolf --  
'Okay, I guess I deserved that. But I WAS just trying to get along with your father.  
And NOW who's self-centred, huh? 'Adorable'? Hmm. Maybe. 'Annoying'? Most definitely. However, I still like you -- so that probably says more about me than it does about you. ;)'

Stiles mentally scoffed as she quickly typed in her reply before sending it, and still completely oblivious to her so-called best friend not-so-secretly spying on her every move.

To Sourwolf --  
'You're quite a cheeky, little fucker when you wanna be, huh? Hmm. I MAY just like this new side of you, sourwolf. ;)'

And that wasn't too much -- right? Stiles didn't think so. What harm could a little bit of flirting do? Besides, HE started it. Or, wait -- did SHE start it? Again. And now Stiles was scowling to herself trying to fricking remember. 'Ugh. Stupid, sexy eyebrow freak. Ugh!' She almost jumped when her phone vibrated again.

From Sourwolf --  
'You may?  
And how do know this isn't just a side of me you haven't seen until now? Maybe you just bring this side of me out. Maybe...'

"Holy fuck."

"What?" Scott asked, his eyes widening slightly in excitement.

"What?" Stiles turned to him, looking completely confused.

"What?" Scott asked, now looking just as confused as her.

Stiles wrinkled her nose in annoyance. "Did I just say that out loud?"

Scott simply nodded, still looking quite confused. Then again, there was hardly anything different there.

"Fuck." Stiles hissed, also mentally cursing her, though, the cursing was much louder in her mind, that was for fricking sure.

Scott smirked, looking slightly amused again. "What's it say?" He asked all too hopefully, even trying his infamous werepuppy pout. Ugh.

Stiles glared at him before quickly looking away from his stupid and ridiculous adorable face. "No! No way! Uh-uh! Stop with the face, dude or I will kick it off!"

Scott arched a brow at her, shooting her a rather lame look. "You're gonna kick my face off? How is that even possible?"

"Want me to show you?" Stiles retorted without missing a beat, arching a brow and shooting him a pointed look.

Scott merely rolled his eyes at the threatening tone of her voice. "Please. You can't take me. Werewolf, here. I'll kick your ass with one hand."

"Exactly [b]how[/b] does one kick another's ass by using one's hand?" Stiles asked, her tone dripping with sarcasm, though, her eyes lit up in amusement.

Scott simply glared at her, letting out a small, frustrated huff. "Stop with the mind-fucking!" He barked.

Stiles shot him an innocent smile. "I'm not mind-fucking you, brother. Because that would be mental incest."

Scott wrinkled his nose in disgust. "Sick, little hussy." He grumbled.

Stiles chuckled lightly. "Overgrown Yorkshire Terrier." She muttered back before typing her replying back to sourwolf.

Scott glared at her. Oh, so she wanted to play THIS game again, huh? Well, that was just fine by him. Because he would win! One day, anyway... "Oh, yeah? Well... Well, you're a..."

Stiles arched a brow at him. "Come on, Scotty, you can do it." She chirped, wearing a small, but teasing grin.

Scott glared at her once again. "You're a ladyboy fuck-toy for the supernatural. Oh, what? What's that? 'Oh, no, he didn't!'? Oh, yes, he did!"

Stiles nodded in approval, a slightly impressed look on her face. "Well, that one is getting stored in MY memory."

Scott grinned. "That's good, right?"

Stiles chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, it's good."

"I just thought of that off the top of my head." Scott chimed, looking sorely pleased with himself.

Stiles smirked. "Yeah... It's, uh, it's good. But uh, you're, uh, you're still fart-nugget, fuck-bubble, jizz-toy that comes running with every crack of his huntress mistress' silver chain whip. And it WAS kinda cute, at first, anyway, but now? Now, it's just kinda pathetic, dude. Even Aiden's not THAT whipped. Ha! Pardon the pun."

To which, Scott glared at her before shouting a surrender of: "Fuck it!"

Stiles simply smirked smugly to herself before finally sending her text.

To Sourwolf --  
'Hmm. And just what kind of side would that be? ;)'


	71. Chapter 71

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Where the fuck is Stiles?"

Scott yawned loudly as he stretched across the couch. He frowned, slowly cracking his eyes open to find that he was alone in the Stilinski living room. The TV was still on and he could still hear the steady heartbeat of the Sheriff from above him, but he couldn't hear Stiles, like at all. He slowly sat up, sniffing the air only to find merely faint traces of her scent over literally everything in the house (understandably). Not wanting to wake the Sheriff up or alert anyone until he knew what was going on, he quickly reached into his pocket for his phone and dialled her number. He rang her a few more times after that, but with no luck at all. He then quickly Derek's number. And thankfully, like most of the time, the older werewolf answered on the third ring.

"Scott? What's up?"

Scott's frown deepened as he noticed the slightly confused tone in the other werewolf's voice. "Uh, hey. This isn't really her style, and, I'm not panicking or anything -- yet, anyway -- but is Stiles with you right now?"

"No. Why? What's going on!?"

"Whoa, calm down, we don't know anything yet --"

"Cut the bullshit, Scott." Derek snapped, sounding rather agitated now. Because yes, he remember what happened the last time Stiles disappeared. And it scared the fuck out of him. "Where the fuck is Stiles?"

"I don't know!" Scott hissed. "I'm gonna see if I can follow her scent -- figure out which way she went." He explained, already on his feet and stalking silently out of the house.

"Good. But don't leave until I get there." Derek practically ordered.

Scott rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Yeah, no problem." He mumbled before hanging up...

...Peter frowned curiously as he watched his nephew hurriedly pulling on his leather jacket. "Trouble in Paradise?" He asked, quirking a brow and look all too intrigued.

Derek did what he did best and shot the "man" a glare. "Stiles is missing." He explained simply as he stalked towards the elevator.

Peter rolled his eyes as he followed. "Again?" He shook his head. "You may wanna think about putting a bell on her."

Derek merely shot him another glare.

"I'm just saying." Peter said, raising his hands up in surrender.

Derek rolled his eyes, then arching an expectant brow as he watched his so-called uncle saunter into the elevator beside him.

"Oh, come on. It's a full moon tonight -- remember?" Peter chirped. "Like I'm gonna let you and Scotty-boy have all the fun."

"Get out." Derek ordered calmly, but firmly.

"Derek, be fair now!" Peter practically whined.

"I AM being fair -- if you don't get out of this elevator in the next 5 seconds, I'm gonna punch you really hard in the face." Derek stated with a serious, yet, still calm and controlled expression.

Peter scoffed loudly, not moving a muscle. That was, until he saw a large fist coming his way from the corner of his gaze...

...Scott quickly reached into his pocket when his phone rang and sighed in disappointment when he realised that it wasn't his missing best friend. "Allison, hey. What's up?" He asked, trying to keep his voice calm.

"I was just bored. I wanted to hear your voice... You sound upset... What's going on? Is it your dad?" Allison asked hurriedly, sounding increasingly concerned with every word she spoke.

"No, it's not my dad..." Scott sighed loudly in defeat, his eyes finally filling with tears. "It's Stiles... She's gone missing... Again..."

"Oh, my God. Okay. Okay. It's okay." Allison took a deep breath, calming herself down quickly and forcing herself to stay focussed. "Where are you right now?"

"I'm outside her house." Scott explained. "I got into a fight with my dad last night, so I came here and we ended up falling asleep on her couch, but when I woke up, she was gone."

"Okay. It's okay, Scott. It's gonna okay." Allison promised, though, she didn't sound all that convinced herself. "I'm coming to you. 5 minutes. Don't move."

"Yeah, okay." Scott mumbled miserably. "I called Derek, too. He's on his wa --"

"I'm here."

Scott whirled around to find the older werewolf standing right behind him. "He's here."

"Okay. I'm already in my car. See you in a 4." Allison stated before hanging up altogether.

"We should check the forest." Derek stated. "She might be sleepwalking again."

Scott nodded. "Okay. But shouldn't we call the others? We need the entire pack looking for her."

Derek nodded. "I already called Cora and Isaac -- they're checking the local parks."

Scott nodded, yanking his phone out before dialling.

"Ugh! What is it, McCall!? It's nearly 4:30 in the fricking morning! You wolves are so fricking inconsiderate!"

"Lydia, shut up!" Scott snapped.

Lydia scoffed loudly. "Excuse me? How dare you --"

"Stiles is missing right now. Like, nowhere to be fricking found!" Scott explained hastily, his tone low and harsh.

But at this, Lydia seemed to snap out of her angry, little rant. "What!? Holy frig! Okay! We're on our way! Where are you?"

Scott took a deep breath to calm himself down (as much as possible right now, anyway) before answering. "Derek and I are outside her house. Her dad's sleeping, so let's keep it that way, at least, until we know what the hell's going on."

"Obviously." Lydia retorted. "Aiden, get up!"

"Cora and Isaac are checking the local parks. I want you and Aiden to check the high school. And could you also, maybe call Ethan and Danny and tell them to check the hospital?" Scott asked.

"Yeah, no problem. I'll call you." Lydia stated quickly before hanging up altogether.


	72. Chapter 72

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Are YOU seriously calling ME dumb, McCall?"

Scott's glowing red orbs scanned the dark forest as he stalked through the dead leaves with Derek a few steps ahead of his, doing the same. "We're going in circles." He muttered.

Derek sighed. "Yeah." He mumbled, halting for a moment.

"I can't get a lock down of her scent, it's all over the place." Scott noted, sniffing loudly with a slightly bewildered look on his face.

Derek simply nodded in acknowledgement before reaching into his jacket pocket for his phone and dialling his mate's number.

"Dude, I already rang her a bunch of times before you met me outside of her house. It just keeps ringing." Scott noted with a grave look of concern.

"Fuck." Derek cursed under his breath. "And now it's just going straight to voicemail." He grumbled, shoving his phone back into his pocket.

Scott jumped slightly when he felt his own phone vibrate and quickly scrambled to pull it from his own jacket. He sighed, disappointed once again that it wasn't a call from his best friend before answering. "Allison -- you found her yet?" He asked hastily as the other Alpha listened in closely to both sides of the conversation.

Allison sighed in defeat -- that being enough of an answer for the boys already. "Not yet. But my dad just found some tracks -- small, but human and barefoot."

Scott's heart raced slightly. "She wasn't wearing any shoes or socks last night." He recalled, mostly to himself. "Shit! She's sleepwalking again!" He hissed, angry at himself. "She's wandering around out here all by herself with barely any fricking clothes on!"

Derek let out a low grumbling growl before stalking off, trying to follow his mate's scattered scent as best he could.

"Shit!" Scott hissed again as he glared after the angry Alpha. "Derek! Wait! God damn it!" He growled in annoyance as he quickly bounded after the older werewolf.

"Scott? Are you okay? Is Derek okay? What's going on?" Allison asked quickly, sounding rather concerned.

"It's just Derek, doing what he does best; being a drama Queen." Scott shot the other werewolf a pointed look.

Derek shot him a brief glare, but didn't stop his fast pace. "Where are they? I wanna see these tracks." He stated, barely grunting his words out.

Scott huffed, rolling his eyes at the older werewolf's antics. "Allison, we're coming to you now. Where are you?"

"About a mile and a half away from the North-West boarder. You can sniff us out and find us from there, right?"

Scott smiled lightly, despite his best fucking friend forever still being missing. But that was always just Allison. She always managed to make him smile, even in his worst times. "Yeah, we can do that. See you in 5 minutes."

"Okay. Be careful. I love you."

Scott's smile widened. "I always am. And I love you, too." He chimed before hanging up altogether and shoving his phone back into his pocket, while still following after the other Alpha. He smirked slightly to himself when he spotted the other werewolf roll his eyes. "What? Jealous?" He teased, though, while wearing a small, but innocent grin.

Derek scoffed. "Of what? Of YOU? Please." He arched a brow, looking rather amused at the mere suggestion.

Scott scoffed back. "Y'know, you and Stiles are actually more alike than I've ever realised." He stated, looking slightly amused himself.

"What'd you mean?" Derek asked, looking all too curious now.

"Well, for starters; you both like to play it dumb, for SOME reason." Scott stated with a pointed look and a slightly knowing smile.

"Are YOU seriously calling ME dumb, McCall?" Derek shot him an incredulous look. Though, he still looked slightly amused.

Scott rolled his eyes. "I'm not talking about THAT kind of smart, I'm talking about you both being constantly emotionally constipated." He stated with another pointed look.

To which, (understandably) Derek glared at him. "You better be trying to make a point here, pup." He stated, nay, threatened through narrowed eyes.

Scott smirked before making his point -- which he already knew that Derek knew exactly what he was talking about, hence the part about him and Stiles always playing the dumb game. "My point is that you're in love with her. I'm not stupid, despite what you think." He scowled slightly. "And I don't really know if she's in love with you in return -- 'cause, like I said; she's almost emotionally constipated as you are and she doesn't really talk to me about that kinda stuff, or [b]anyone[/b], for that matter -- but... I know that she cares about you. Like, a lot." And again, he scoffed, loudly. "And by the way, that's 'True-Alpha-Pup' to YOU, thank you very much." He stated all too smugly.

"True Alpha or not -- I'll STILL kick your annoying, little ass." Derek threatened all too calmly. And who'd have thought that Scott could ever annoy him even more than Stiles could? Or that Scott was actually quite a deep thinker? Huh. He still learned something everyday, it seemed. He just hoped that Stiles was okay, because he was barely managing to hang on by a thread here. And at that thought, he wondered how hell Scott managed to use his own mask the hide the miserable and anxious scent wafting off of him in heavy waves. How was it that the mere pup that Peter had bitten on a whim would ever surpass, well, anything?

"Whatever." Scott shrugged lazily before quickly breaking out into a full pelt run. "Later, ALPHA." He chuckled loudly, smugly and without even looking back.

Derek stared after him for a few moments before snarling loudly in annoyance and finally darting off behind him...

...Stiles gasped quietly as she startled herself awake. She shivered upon feeling the cold night air nipping bitterly at her skin and felt the dry leaves crunching beneath her as she slowly pulled herself up into a sitting position. She glanced around through her groggy and slightly blurred vision, her eyes scanning the familiar surroundings of the forest of Beacon Hills.

"Finally."

Stiles gasped loudly this time, jumping in fright as her head snapped to the side, her eyes instantly landing on an all too familiar, scaly face. "Cooter?" She shot him a look of confusion as she tried to calm her racing heart down. "You scared the shit out of me, you jerk!" She snapped, now glaring at him.

Cooter grinned sheepishly as he slowly emerged from the darkness like a Cheshire Cat, only it was his eyes (as well as his -- literally -- illuminated white fangs) which glowed and stood out before revealing himself finally. "Heh. Sorry, girly."

Stiles merely rolled her eyes as she slowly pulled herself up onto her feet. "Ugh." She glanced down, realising finally why the hell she was so cold -- because she was only clothed in her Batman boy-shorts and one of her father's old plain white t-shirts. The same clothes she was wearing when she and Scott finally fell asleep.

"Nice P.Js." Cooter smirked in amusement.

Stiles merely shot him another glare. "First of all -- do you know what time it is?" She asked, shooting him a genuinely curious look.

"Uh, yah." Cooter nodded. "It's 5:30 in the morning."

Stiles nodded in acknowledgement before firing her next question at the demon. "Second of all -- how the hell did I get all the way out here? Am I sleepwalking again?" She asked, looking rather bummed out at that possibility.

"Uh, sorta." Cooter waved his hand in a so-so motion.

"Wait -- am I astral projecting again? Is that how I can see you right now? Is my body still back at my house?" Stiles asked, looking all too hopeful.

"Uh, no. And that's where the 'sorta' part comes in." Cooter chirped reassuringly.

"Okay..." Stiles mumbled, then silently urging him to continue.

"See, you're what we call 'breaking out' in the world of magic. Your spark is finally igniting, so to speak. It's actually pretty exciting. Well, depending on how you wanna look at it, that is." Cooter explained with an enthusiastic grin. "You're so much more than just an emissary to a pack of werewolves. And in time, you'll see that."

Stiles arched a brow, not quite believing him.

Cooter only grinned. "You sleepported."

"I what?" Stiles blinked several times, now looking extremely confused.

Cooter's excited expression dropped slightly at her lack of enthusiasm. "Y'know, like, sleepwalk, teleport -- sleepported... Ugh, forget it." He huffed in annoyance, clearly giving up. "You teleported in your sleep... Is what I was trying to say. I was trying to be cool, like Morpheus... Man, THAT dude is cool."

Stiles stared incredulously at the demon. "I'm sorry, hold on a second -- you've seen the Matrix? YOU?"

Cooter looked slightly offended by her expression. "I don't think I like your tone, missy." He stated snootily, folding his large, scaled, armoured arms defiantly over his broad chest.

"You're seriously the campest demon I've ever encountered." Stiles said, shaking her head.

Cooter scoffed loudly. "Y'know, your mother was right -- you ARE a little smartass."

Stiles chuckled lightly, that painful lump already beginning to form slowly in the pit of her throat. "So, I can teleport now, huh?" She asked. Anything to move the conversation along. Besides, teleporting? Seriously? Holy frig!

Cooter smiled excitedly once again, seemingly over his little pouting episode. Bless his little demon socks, Stiles thought with slightly fond amusement. "Yeah. New power. I'm actually kinda surprised that you're developing these abilities so quickly. But it's nothing to worry about. It's awesome, in fact. I can't frigging wait to see what you can do! And I'm not the only one."

Stiles shot him a curious look, silently questioning him.

Cooter's enthusiastic grin simply widened. "It's a secret. Sorry, girly. I've probably already said too much."

Stiles simply nodded. She was annoyed about all these stupid messages and secrets. But she could at least, be patient and understand. For now, anyway.

"Anyway, your friends are looking for you." Cooter stated, glancing around and listening intently. "They're close, so stay put so they can find you." He added, shooting her a pointed look.

"I promise." Stiles smiled much too innocently for the demon's liking.


	73. Chapter 73

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Piggyback ride?"

"Stiles! Thank fuck! Finally!" Scott practically yelled out gleefully as soon as he spotted her in darkness. "Guys! Over here! I found her!" He called back to the others as they ran to catch up to him.

"Hey." Stiles smiled brightly as she padded barefoot carefully over the dried leaves. "Sorry for disappearing on you, dude." She stated, wearing a small, sheepish smile.

Scott immediately bounded over to her and threw his arms around her shoulders, tightly embracing her. "Fuck, bro. You scared the shit outta me. You've SERIOUSLY gotta stop doing this, dude." He huffed out, giving her an affectionate, little squeeze before releasing her.

"Stiles! We were all so frigging worried about you!" Allison wailed as she darted towards the older girl and threw her arms around her the second her boyfriend was out of the way. "Thank God you're okay." She muttered, mostly to herself, giving the other girl a light squeeze before backing away.

"Are you okay?" Derek asked, eyeing his mate with concern as he stood beside the older hunter.

Stiles nodded in response, shooting him a small, but reassuring smile.

"Oh, Stiles," Chris shook his head. "You're always getting into SOME kinda trouble -- which is exactly why you fit in with all of US." He stated with a small, but fond smile as he placed the safety back on his gun before shoving it back into his holster on his best -- now that he knew there was no danger and that she was safe.

Stiles offered another sheepish grin, her cheeks flushing slightly in embarrassment. "Yeah... Again... Sorry..." She mumbled, casting her eyes down to her muddy feet.

"What the hell happened?" Scott all, but demanded, shooting her an utterly confused expression. "Were you sleepwalking again?" He asked, motioning to her (lack of) clothing.

"Kinda... Apparently I teleported in my sleep... 'Cause, y'know, I can do shit like that now... And why not, y'know?" Stiles explained slowly, just waiting for their reaction.

"I'm sorry -- what?" Allison asked, looking rather astonished.

Derek and Chris glanced briefly at one another, both looking somewhat impressed and rather intrigued, to say the very least.

Scott's eyes widened. "You... I... How... I... You... Seriously!?" He all, but spluttered, looking as speechless as he actually was right now.

"If you did it while you were asleep, then how do you know that's what happened?" Chris asked, frowning curiously at the ever-quirky girl.

"Well, thankfully, when I woke up here, in the wonderful and equally creepy forest, Cooter was already watching over me." Stiles began to explain.

"Cooter? The demon guide you told us about?" Chris asked, trying to keep up with everything. He wasn't as young as he used to be.

"Right." Stiles confirmed with a nod. "He explained what the heck happened -- told me that I was finally 'breaking out' in the world of magic -- as he put it. He said that my abilities were developing a little faster than usual. And he DID say that it was nothing to worry about," She frowned slightly. "But I still wanna talk to Deaton about all of this. He's probably the only one around here who may actually know what's going on in this freak show mind of mine."

Derek frowned slightly at her words, but kept his opinions to himself. For now, anyway.

"Yeah, sure. Whatever you want." Scott nodded. "But first, let's just get you back home before your dad notices you're missing." He stated sheepishly. "Seriously, I don't want him to kick my ass over this."

Stiles rolled her eyes, but couldn't help grinning. "It's cool, dude. It's totally my fault this time. And if he DOES try to blame you, I'll just explain what happened." She stated with a lazy shrug.

Scott shot her a grateful smile.

"Well," Allison chirped, strapping her crossbow onto her back. "Now that the panic is over, I should probably call Lydia and the others and let them know we found you." She noted as she dug into her pocket for her phone and quickly dialled the redhead's number before slowly turning around and heading back through the forest the way they all came.

Chris chuckled lightly, shooting Stiles one last grin before turning around and stalking after his daughter with a shake of his head and an amused look on his face.

Scott rolled his eyes at his best friend, though, he was still smiling lightly. "Yeah, I better call Isaac and Ethan." He noted as he (not-so) subtly turned away from the couple, pulling his phone out of his pocket and he shuffled lazily off through the dark forest after the hunters.

Stiles briefly glared after her so-called best friend. "So... Um..." She glanced over at sourwolf, the nervous butterflies already forming in her stomach at the mere sight of him. "Piggyback ride?" She chirped, joking to lighten the mood -- and that horrible scowl across his pretty brow. Her eyes widened then as he suddenly lunged straight at her, her heart racing slightly as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders and embraced her tightly. "Derek -- what --"

"Shut up. Just... Just shut up." Derek snapped calmly, his arms tightening slightly around his as he leaned down enough to bury his nose into that favourite spot of his right under her ear. "Fuck, Stiles," He huffed (almost fricking whined like a little bitch). "I'm with Scott for once -- you scared the shit outta me. Again."

Stiles felt her chest clench slightly when she felt his own heart beating against her ear. She slowly glanced up at him, looking slightly confused. "Derek... I'm okay. Seriously." She slowly brought her own arms up to wrap around his slim (yet still muscular -- like seriously, was there any part of this guy's body that wasn't perfect and built like a fricking God?) waist.

"I missed you." Derek mumbled quietly into the crook of her neck, his arms still wrapped securely around her, as if he would never let go again. And the distraction at least seemed to work. Even if it was the truth.

Stiles chuckled lightly. "I missed you, too."

Derek pulled back to glance back down at her briefly (yet ever-intensely) before leaning forward and capturing her lips with his in a short, but sweet kiss.

Stiles sighed contently as he slowly pulled away after a few seconds and gently rested his forehead against her own. "I missed doing that, too." She whispered, her cheeks already slightly flushed.

Derek shot her a small grin. "What? This?" He muttered back before leaning down and pressing his lips back to hers.

Stiles eyes automatically fluttered as he slowly pulled away again. "Um... Yeah... That..." She mumbled, her voice barely audible -- though, thankfully, not to an Alpha werewolf.

Again, Derek couldn't help grinning slightly, though, this time, mainly in amusement. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Stiles gave a limp, effort-filled and rather dazed nod. "I am NOW." She grinned, ignoring her stupid ever-red cheeks giving her away. 'Traitors!'

Derek huffed out a light chuckle, his hands slowly sliding down from her shoulders to rest on either side of her waist. And God, damn it -- Stiles really did love how big his hands were, like seriously, probably big enough to cover her entire torso. And the incredible warmth that constantly radiated off of his stupid, flawless skin was no fricking help, either. Ugh. He quickly leaned back down, pressing one last sweet kiss to her lips before pulling away from her altogether. He then shrugged off his leather jacket before placing it around her shoulders.

"But, Mister Wolf, won't YOU be cold now?" Stiles taunted with a small grin.

Derek rolled his eyes, but still couldn't help smirking slightly in amusement. "Shut up." He grumbled before turning his back on her an crouching down on one of his knees. "Hop on, Bambi." Of course he wasn't THAT, he wasn't going to let her walk all the way back through the forest without any shoes on socks on her poor, little feet.

Stiles eyes widened, both in shock and surprise. "Really?" She asked, now looking both hopeful and eager. "I was just kidding about the whole piggyback thing." She stated, now shooting him a serious look -- as if to say "you still have time to retract your offer".

Derek shot her a smug smirk over his right shoulder. "Just get on before I change my mind."

Stiles grinned widely as she pushed her arms through the sleeves of his jacket before hopping lightly onto his back without giving it any second thought.

"Damn, you're a lot heavier than you look." Derek mumbled to himself, though, purposefully just loud enough for her to hear.

Stiles scoffed loudly, practically hearing the stupid (sexy) grin on his stupid (sexy) face. "Ugh! I am not!" She whined. "I'm lighter than you, fatass." She retorted as she slipped her arms loosely around his neck, and her legs loosely around his waist, though, just tightly enough so that she didn't fall.

"I'm not fat." Derek scoffed. "Do you want me to drop you?" He turned his head to glance back at her, his brow arched.

Stiles shot him an innocent grin in return as she leaned forward and placed a quick peck to his cheek -- like that made everything better. Only, it kind of did for the werewolf. Ugh.

Derek merely huffed as he began to stalk through the woods, his hands hooked under her knees. 'Damn Stilinski. What the fuck is she doing to me?'


	74. Chapter 74

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Isn't that Derek's jacket?"

Chris pulled up his black Chevy Tahoe at the end of the Stilinski driveway, but kept the engine running. "Okay, it's just coming up to 6 now. What time does your father wake up to go to work?" He asked, glancing at the Sheriff's daughter's reflection in his rear-view mirror.

"6:30." Stiles mumbled with a sigh of relief. "Thank God."

"Well, thanks for the ride, Chris." Scott gave the hunter a grateful grin before opening the back door and hopping out.

"Yeah, thanks for everything tonight, you guys." Stiles agreed, shooting both hunters a grateful smile of her own.

"No problem." Chris said, giving her a curt nod.

"Yeah, don't mention it." Allison nodded her agreement as she turned around in the passenger's seat to shoot the older girl a reassuring grin. "We're all family, after all."

Stiles smiled back and nodded.

"Derek, do you need a ride home?" Chris asked, glancing at the Alpha's reflection with an arched brow.

"No, it's fine. I'll walk." Derek explained simply. "But thanks." He added with a grateful nod.

Again, Chris simply nodded curtly in response.

Stiles narrowed her eyes slightly when Allison smirked smugly to herself at the Alpha's polite decline. But for now, she said nothing. She could scowl and yell at the huntress when they were alone later, she decided. "Well, night, folks." She chirped, slowly sliding out of the vehicle where Scott had left the door open for her and just as Derek slid gracefully and silently out of the other back door.

"Night, Derek!" Allison chirped. "Night, Stiles! See you on Monday!" She waved, blowing a kiss to the couple with a cheesy grin on her face.

Scott chuckled in amusement at the similar glares on both Stiles' and Derek's faces as he shuffled over to his girlfriend's side of the vehicle. "Night." He mumbled softly, leaning in through the rolled down window and placing a gentle kiss against her lips before pulling back out. Because, obviously, he did not want his future father-in-law to shot him in the face for sticking his tongue down his daughter's throat right in front of his face.

"Night." Allison shot him a slightly dazed look back.

Chris loudly cleared his throat, arching a brow at his daughter. "Can we go now?"

Allison chuckled sheepishly. "Heh. Yeah." She nodded before turning back to wave at her boyfriend.

Scott grinned and waved back to her as Chris finally backed out of the driveway and sped off back down the street and back out into the night.

"You still staying with me tonight, Scotty?" Stiles asked curiously.

Scott shook his head. "Nah. I should probably go home and apologise to my mom in the morning." He stated with a slightly sheepish expression.

Stiles nodded in approval. "Good boy." She chirped, padding over to him and giving him a tight hug. "Proud of you."

Scott chuckled, wrapping his arms around her shoulders and hugging her back. "Yeah. Thanks." He mumbled as they slowly parted again. "Anyway, go to bed. And no more teleporting in your sleep... Please." He shot her a pleading look.

Stiles grinned innocently. "Well, no promises there, dude."

Scott scowled down at her.

"What?" Stiles asked. "It's not MY fault if I do it in my sleep, yo." She pointed out. "It can't be helped. At least, until I learn to control it, anyway." She added with a casual shrug.

Scott sighed tiredly and rolled his eyes. "Then TRY, at least. For my own sanity. Please, dude." He shot her another pleading look.

Stiles chuckled lightly and nodded. "Okay. I'll try. I promise." She chirped back. "Cross my heart and hope to die..."

Scott narrowed his eyes slightly. "Don't even joke about shit like that."

"Never-ever-tell-a-lie..." Stiles quickly finished, unable to help herself. "Not that one could ever fricking lie to a freaking werewolf." She mumbled under her breath, obviously knowing he would hear her every word, as God damn usual.

To which, Scott's eyes narrowed even more, while Derek stood silently amused as he continued to watch the infamous (and sometimes actually rather entertaining) duo.

Stiles rolled her eyes, though, while fighting back the urge to smirk in amusement also. "Goodnight, Scotty." She then reached up on her tiptoes to give him a quick peck on the cheek before turning around and padding (still barefoot) back towards her house...

...Derek smirked in amusement from his place on the end of her bed as she shuffled silently back into her bedroom. "Happy now?" He teased, motioning to her squeaky clean feet.

Stiles glanced briefly down at her feet and smiled pleasantly back up at the werewolf. "Yes. Very, actually." She chimed snootily.

Derek chuckled lightly. "Y'know, you wouldn't really make a good werewolf." He stated casually, smirking when she glared at him. "You'd probably make a good werepanther, though. Y'know? -- 'Cause cats always like be clean." He added with a small grin.

"Werepanther?" Stiles arched a brow at him. "Are those real or are you just messing with me right now?" She pouted slightly when she was unable to read his stupid (pretty) face.

"Cross my heart." Derek replied with a small, but still highly amused grin.

Stiles narrowed her eyes at him. Though, she was also fighting back the urge to smirk. "Ugh. You're impossible."

"[ME? I'M impossible? REALLY?" Derek retorted, shooting her a pointed look. Although, he was smirking slightly now.

Stiles was about to open her mouth to answer when a loud knock sounded on her bedroom door. Her eyes widened slightly in panic as they darted between the door and the werewolf sitting on the end of her bed.

"Stiles? You okay, kid?" John called out from the other side of the door.

"Uh, yeah. Gimme a second, I'll be right there." Stiles glanced over at the werewolf, shooting him an expectant look.

Derek smirked smugly as he slowly rose from the bed and silently shuffled across the room with her to hide behind the door as she opened it up.

"Morning, pops." Stiles chirped, shooting him a bright smile.

John arched a brow. "Why're you up so early? It's a Saturday." He shot her a pointed look.

"Oh, uh, I couldn't sleep. Thought I'd get some homework done instead." Stiles explained. And she felt bad for lying to her father, but it was better this way, for them both. Besides, she didn't want to worry him. He had enough shit to deal with on a daily fricking basis.

John frowned slightly, still looking concerned. "You need to sleep, kiddo." He told her, now shooting her a stern look. "And I think maybe you oughtta lay off the Adderall for a couple of days, at least. Let your mind unscramble a little before you back to school on Monday."

Stiles nodded. "Yeah, sure. I can do that. No problem."

John nodded and was about to turn away when he noticed something familiar laying over her desk chair. "Isn't that Derek's jacket?" He asked curiously, though, narrowing his eyes suspiciously at her.

"Uh, yeah..." Stiles nodded, mentally cursing herself. "I borrowed it the other night and I haven't had the chance to give it back to him yet." She explained.

Derek smirked to himself, keeping silent until he was sure he was safe of being shot in the face -- until his werewolf healing could no longer help him -- as the Sheriff, himself had put it.

John huffed lightly, but nodded, seeming to accept her response (thankfully). "Well, I'm going to work now. Probably won't be home 'til late again. Sorry, kiddo." He said, looking rather guilty now.

Stiles shot him a reassuring smile, even if she was rather bummed out. "It's cool. You're the Sheriff. You gotta do what you gotta do, right?" She chirped brightly.

John chuckled quietly and nodded. "Right."

"Later, pops. Go kick some criminal ass." Stiles chimed, waving after him. She waited until he began to descend the staircase before finally closing her bedroom door again. She let out a little sigh of relief and turned her gaze to the werewolf, who was now smirking back at her. "What?" She asked, narrowing her eyes slightly and eyeing him suspiciously.

Derek's smirk widened slightly as he gave her a lazy shrug in response. "Cute P.Js, by the way."

Stiles chuckled, her mind briefly flashing back to Cooter; the campest supernatural creature she had ever known. And probably one of the coolest, too. "Um, thanks." She mumbled, her cheeks flushing slightly as she realised what she was still wearing. "So, um, you wanna stick around for a little while?" She asked. "I don't think I can go back to sleep now. I feel kinda wired."

Derek frowned slightly. "Is that the real reason? Or is it just 'cause you're afraid to go back to sleep now?" He asked, eyeing her closely.

'Ugh. Stupid know-it-all werewolves.' Stiles cursed in her mind. "No... Maybe... Yes..." She shrugged lazily.

Derek nodded in acknowledgement as he moved closer, now standing in front of her. "Then," He slowly reached out with both arms, his hands gently resting on either side of her waist. "How about I stay and watch over you?"

Stiles arched a brow. "Sounds a LITTLE creeperwolf-like." She chirped, shooting him a small, but teasing grin.

Derek narrowed his eyes slightly. "I'm NOTHING like Peter." He grumbled before leaning down and pressing his lips to hers.

Stiles sighed quietly and contently when he pulled away (sadly) after just a few brief moments. "No." She whispered, her eyes fluttering lightly, her hands open, flatly pressed against his incredible abs -- while sadly his t-shirt was still in the fricking way. "No, you're not." She mumbled, quietly clearing her throat.

Derek shot her a small, but clearly amused grin before leaning back down and pressing his lips back to hers.

Stiles immediately slid her hands up his stomach, and up his chest, slowly and purposefully and grinned against his mouth when she was rewarded by the low, purr-like growl he gave against her own mouth. She tried to ignore the pleasant crawl of her own skin as she felt his muscles twitch beneath her touch and slid her hands over his shoulders before linking them around the back of his neck.

Derek let out another low growl as he felt her body press against his own. He slid his hands down her waist and around to her ass before giving the firm, soft plums of flesh a tight squeeze. He then slid his hands down to her thighs, also giving them a firm, but quick squeeze before sliding further down until they were hooked behind her knees instead.

Stiles let out a gasp of surprise against his when she suddenly felt him lifting her knees up. She automatically wrapped her legs around his waist, her arms tightening around his neck as she pulled herself ever closer to him. And when she felt his hands slide back up to firmly cup her ass cheeks again, she sighed loudly against his mouth, her hands disconnecting and flying to the back of his head instead, her fingers threading through his short, silky, black tufts of hair.

Derek finally pulled his mouth away from hers, groaning lightly when she purposefully dragged her sharp fingernails over his scalp. He quickly turned around, stalking a few short strides across her bedroom before dumping them both lazily back onto her bed. He smirked slightly to himself when she let out a loud chuckle, his face hovering over hers as he glanced intently down at her down a few moments.

And Stiles stared back up at him, blushing under his merciless (beautiful) orbs. And she really did want to just pull him forward for another kiss -- anything to make him stop looking at her like that, because it was too fricking much right now. She wasn't a fricking Saint, for crying out loud! But she also simply couldn't just look away, for some (annoying) reason.

"Stiles," Derek began -- 'I love you.' And really, he REALLY did want to just blurt it out. So, why couldn't he? He sighed quietly in defeat, chickening out at the very last second. 'I'm such a fucking coward.' He thought miserably.

Stiles frowned slightly, her expression dropping altogether now. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong." Derek told her, shooting her a reassuring smile.

Stiles' frown deepened and clearly, she didn't believe the werewolf. "You're lying. I don't need werewolf ears to know that." She stated pointedly.

Derek sighed lightly.

And Stiles took that as a confirmation. "Is it me?" She asked, looking rather worried and somewhat horrified now. "Are you, like, breaking up with me now? I mean, I guess I expected it sooner or later, and I guess we were never actually really together." She ranted on, feeling her nerves get the better of her. Though, sadly, that wasn't really a new thing for her.

"Stiles, I'm not breaking up with you." Derek finally cut in, making her finally stop. "And what'd you mean you expected it sooner or later?" He scowled slightly. "I'm not a total asshole. I don't just use woman like that. How could you even think that?" He asked, looking slightly hurt now.

"I don't know..." Stiles shrugged lightly, now feeling slightly guilty, her chest clenching bitterly at the feeling. "I just..." She sighed loudly in defeat. "I just don't get why you like me."

Derek shot her a slightly confused look.

Stiles rolled her eyes at his expression. "It's not like you WANT to be with me. It's just the stupid mating bond thingy." She explained with another shrug, while trying not to look too miserable. Because, even though he had always been an asshole to her in the past, she had still been a little attracted to him. Because, duh -- it was Derek Hale. He was as pretty as he was an asshole, it seemed. But still, she was glad she had been able to witness the (rare) softer side of the big, bad sourwolf.

Derek sighed, ignoring the whimper wolf prowling uncomfortable just under the surface of his skin. "Stiles," He leaned forward, pressing a short, but sweet kiss to her lips before resting his forehead lightly against her own. "I love you."


	75. Chapter 75

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Don't you EVER wear a bra?"

"I... You..." Stiles eyes were wide as she stared back up at him, her entire body frozen beneath his as he hovered lightly over her, still. "I... You... You, what?" She asked with her voice barely above a whisper and while wearing a slightly incredulous look.

"Shit... Stiles... I'm..." Derek frowned slightly, his nerves getting the better of him -- which they rarely ever did -- well, unless he was around his mate, it seemed. "I'm sorry." He mumbled out quickly. His frown then deepened as he saw the very brief look of hurt flash through her large, whisky, doe orbs. Though, he hoped that look meant that she may feel the same way about him in return. "No, not for saying it. Never for saying it. I meant it. Just like I mean everything I ever say to you. I promise you that, I swear." He quickly clarified, looking almost panicked now. "I just... I..." He let out a small sigh of frustration, because -- well, he was just never really any good with words, he never had been and probably never really would be, because -- well, that was just the way he was wired (he guessed, anyway). And besides, it wasn't exactly a secret, to anyone, in fact -- which was obviously where the nickname "sourwolf" came from -- which was also (and God fricking help him, especially if he were ever to find himself admitting it out loud, and which he also really hoped would never actually happen -- and that was mainly, and ever-secretly a manly slash wolf pride thing for him) actually slowly, but surely beginning to grow on him. Although, only when Stiles used it. And to be quite frank, he had never really cared about any of that. Until now, that is. "I just really, really don't wanna fuck up what we already have here, and... And I really didn't wanna freak you out. I didn't exactly plan on just randomly blurting it out like I just did. So... I... Well, I'm sorry for that, too." He explained, now looking slightly miserable about the sudden turn of events. All of which, totally his fault, again. And now she was giving him a rather strange (not exactly bad, but not exactly what he considered good, either) look. 'Too late.' He thought. 'Looks like I already did just that. Exactly what I didn't fricking wanna do. Ever. Ugh. Kill me now. Please. Right now, I just want Allison or even Chris to bust down that bedroom door and shoot me in the face with Wolfsbane. Seriously, Hale -- good job! Ugh. And I just bet Laura's probably laughing at me in her grave right now.' He thought with bitter sarcasm, to himself, of course.

"But... You..." Stiles breathed, gulping silently and trying desperately to compose herself, if even a little bit, at least. For both their fricking sakes here, too. "You... You love me? ...Like, you... You LOVE love me?" She asked slowly and ever so carefully. And obviously, that was simply because right now, she was actually totally really not being able to quite believe the actual words that were actually coming out of her mouth -- let alone witnessing the infamous SOURwolf saying those words to her, not but a few minutes ago. And in the back of her mind, she did also briefly wonder if she was dreaming or experiencing something as equally... Insane. And awesome. Totally awesome. But still kind of a little insane. She just needed a little bit more of a confirmation before she even begin to think of what to say back. Although, the more time she seemed to spend with him, the more the answer seemed to be clearer to her. And not to mention the part where sourwolf seemed to be talking more than her. Another rarity, it seemed. But totally fricking awesome. Even if she was only barely managing to process his words, still. But she would get there in the end. Slowly, but surely. She always seemed to, at least.

"Well... Yeah... Yeah, I do..." Derek nodded, though just barely. And while he wanted to smile (just a little) at the slightly incredulously slash bewildered and looking very much like something that reminded him of a cartoon character, both fondly and in amusement, and yet, still (annoyingly, annoyingly adorable, that is) managing to look -- well, completely adorable, the what-should-be (or, at least, he thought so) confidant Alpha actually began to look slightly (okay, maybe a little more that "slightly" but whatever) wary and unsure of himself -- another rarity, they all seemed to happen at once for him. Well, lately, they did, anyway. But whatever inner turmoil he felt right now while he waited as patiently as he possibly could for her to respond -- well, properly respond, anyway -- he still also felt a little better; a little lighter; like a really fricking heavy weight had finally been lifted from his shoulders. And yeah, it wasn't the most ideal situation, but he still felt rather proud of himself for finally stop "beating around the bush" -- as Cora had (annoyingly, annoyingly accurate, that is) once put it. "So... Is that... I mean, is that... Okay? ...With you?" He frowned, looking rather worried now. "Are you... You're not angry with me now -- are you?" He asked timidly as he glanced down at her with slightly widened eyes. Damn those stupid, pretty eyes of his.

"I... What? Am I... Am I angry with you? ...For... I..." Stiles attention finally focussed fully back on his current words -- rather than the three crazy (totally girly squeal worthy) words he had previously come out with. And in that moment, she decided that this really was one of the bat-shit craziest, but also most wonderful night's of her life.

"It's okay. You don't have to say it back. That's not why I said it." Derek managed to shoot her a small, but reassuring smile. And though he was being honest with her, he still couldn't help feeling slightly (again, probably more than that) disappointed. "But I just... I mean, I can just about deal with you freaking out on me right now, but I..." He swallowed quietly, the aching lump in his throat. "I just don't want you to be angry or upset with me... Ever."

"Derek," And now Stiles was beginning to smile slightly, because it simply couldn't be helped. "I'm not angry with you."

"No?" Derek asked, looking slightly hopeful, though, not quite believing her, it seemed.

Stiles' smile widened a little. "No." She confirmed, while sliding her hands slowly over his shoulders and wrapping her arms loosely around the back of his neck.

Derek leaned a little closer, though, he still looked a little wary. "So, you're okay with it, then?" He just needed to be sure, because right now, he could barely hear her pulse over his own, ringing loudly through his sensitive ears.

Stiles chuckled lightly at how completely adorable he looked when he was nervous. But seriously, though -- what was with all the rare shit happening all at once tonight? Although, not that she was complaining. God, no, she would never. "I'm more than okay with it. I --" She nibbled lightly on her bottom lip to stop herself from speaking. And now she mainly felt nervous and stupid, again. "I kinda love you, too..."

And as best the werewolf could, Derek ignored his stupid, stuttering heart and even managed a fricking smirk. Like, how the hell? He really didn't know. "Only 'kinda'?" He teased lightly, while very much enjoying her flushing cheeks.

Stiles rolled her eyes at his ever-smug attitude. "Ugh. I was TRYING to be cute. Please don't ruin the moment." She muttered, shooting him a somewhat playful glare.

"I'm not." Derek replied through an innocent mumble. He totally was. And he knew they both knew that. Not like he didn't make it totally obvious, anyway. "And you're always cute. You don't have to try."

Stiles shot him a "what-the-hell-ever" look. "I just... I don't..." She scowled to herself, trying to find the correct words, but it was proving fricking difficult right now. Especially when he was still so fricking close. Ugh.

"It's okay." Derek cut in, shooting her a reassuring look. "I get it. It's moving too fast for you." He tried not to frown at that, but he was sure she had seen if the small frown on her own face was anything to go by. Damn. He used to be so good as the whole masking his emotions. 'Damn, Stilinski. Seriously, what the hell have you doing to me?'

"No, that's not it." Stiles protested, her voice soft and reassuring as she tightened her arms slightly around his neck. "I just, I didn't realise, that you... I mean, I know you like me, but... Ugh, what the heck is wrong with me!?" She glared to herself. "I'm usually the one people can't get to shut the fuck up and now I can't even talk properly!"

"Stiles," Derek mumbled, leaning slowly forward and placing a short, but sweet kiss to her lips.

Stiles let out a small, relieved sigh and she glanced sheepishly back up at him. "Stop talking?"

"No." Derek smiled and shook his head. "Don't ever stop talking, Stiles. It's one of the things you do best."

"Pff. It gets me into a lot of trouble." Stiles stated pointedly.

Derek's smile widened into a small, but amused grin. He seriously didn't doubt her words. "Yeah." He nodded in agreement, fighting back a chuckle when she glared up at him. "But it also always somehow manages to get you back out of trouble." He pointed out, arching a brow.

Stiles' narrowed her eyes slightly. "You feel good? Huh? You feel about yourself right now? Mister God-Damn-Know-It-All."

Derek smirked, because, well, he couldn't help it, damn it. "I have an answer for everything -- remember?" He retorted all too smugly.

Stiles grinned at that. "Careful," She teased lightly. "You're even starting to sound a LITTLE like Peter now."

Derek narrowed his eyes down at her. "Well, if you love Peter so much, then why don't you go be with HIM instead?" He huffed out. And though he was clearly joking, he still couldn't help the sting of jealously he felt. 'Oh, come on! Like she would ever go near Peter!' His mind tried to ease him a little and it did work, a little.

Stiles immediately wrinkled her face in disgust -- and she would probably never know how relieve the sourwolf suddenly felt over that reaction. "Okay, first of all; ew. And second of all; EW!"

And now Derek was smirking in amusement again -- seriously, enough on Stiles, she sometimes wondered if sourwolf was freaking bi-polar.

"Seriously, just... Just ew." Stiles mumbled, wrinkling her face in disgust again at the mere suggestion. "Besides," She perked up a little, though, staring slightly nervously up at him again. "One Hale is enough for me..." And she WAS trying to flirt here, but by the amused look on his face right now, she say that she had probably failed. Again. Ugh.

"Oh, yeah? Any particular one?" Derek arched a brow, wearing a small, but teasing grin.

"Yeah. The one with the vagina..." Stiles aired casually, though, unable to help the wide grin that grew across her lips, her pretty, swollen (deliciously, because of him) lips. And again, she couldn't help chuckling at the low rumbling growl he gave her, along with that pretty scowl of his. "But I think she has a thing for your first Beta; the werecurls." She added, pretending to both sound and look bummed out. And yeah, okay, maybe she WAS getting better at this whole flirting slash teasing thing. Maybe. Although, it seemed to be working like a fricking supernatural charm.

"Okay." Derek nodded. "The werecurls part was kinda funny and cute, I'll give you that." He narrowed his eyes slightly. "And I already knew that you used to have a crush on Cora." He shrugged it off casually, too fricking casually.

Stiles' eyes widened, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment now. "What!? No. I --"

"Stiles," Derek smirked, looking somewhat amused again. "It's fine."

Stiles opened her mouth to begin to protest again, but shut up when he shot her a pointed look. "Ugh." She huffed out. "I'm a horrible person."

Derek chuckled. "No, you're not. You're just a horny teenager."

"Pff. Rude." Stiles shot him a glare to ignore her ever-flushing cheeks. "True... But still rude." She mumbled under her breath.

Derek simply smirked, looking highly amused now.

"Anyway," Stiles glared back up at him. "I'm a teenager. So... What's YOUR excuse, sourwolf?" She asked snootily, shooting him an expectant look. "Oh, and don't feed the 'I'm a werewolf' line. You were born a werewolf, so the control issue is NOT an issue here." She added smugly, seemingly challenging him -- yes, an Alpha. So the fuck what? Stiles would challenge anyone if she ever saw fit to. And yeah, okay, maybe that would finally one day be the reason of her demise. But hopefully not.

Derek's smirk only widened as he slowly leaned down, his forehead resting lightly over her own. "What makes you think there's any issue at all here?" He asked, his voice low and his ever-intense orbs scorching her own. "What makes you think I don't do it on purpose?" He mumbled, feeling incredibly smug as he listened close to her heart beating against her chest.

"Then," Stiles breathed out, her entire body frozen, her skin erupting into thousands of tiny goosepimples. "Then you're an even bigger horndog than I thought you were."

Derek huffed out a small laugh, not quite expecting that response. "By the way," He leaned closer, giving her a quick, but chaste kiss. "I STILL haven't forgiven you for hanging up on me." He stated, shooting her a playful glare.

"Oh, yeah." And now Stiles was chuckling lightly, because she couldn't help it. Damn, she thought she had gotten away with that. Pff. Not that she even cared. Because, holy fuck. "Huh. I seem to recall you threatening me with this 'no mercy' of yours." She scoffed, clearly challenging him again. Only this time, she nearly gasped at the thrilling tingling sensation that jolted through her body when he let out another low, rumbling growl. And then his mouth was firmly placed back over hers, her arms immediately tightening around the back of his neck again.

Derek moved his lips faster, his tongue darting out to lick the seam of her lips and he couldn't help growling quietly again when he felt her tongue doing the same, copying his actions. He used his tongue again to part her lips this time before delving into to fight against her own, and of course, he was all too pleased to hear and feel her moan quietly against his mouth in return. He slid one hand around her waist, placing it flat against her back and pulling her as close as fricking possible. His other hand reached up, resting against the back of her neck.

Stiles gasped for air when he finally pulled away, only to gasp again when he instantly moved his mouth to her neck, sucking and nipping lightly at her exposed flesh. Her breathing then hitched slightly for a split second when she felt his hand slowly slide back down her neck to instantly cup her right breast and give it a painfully wonderful squeeze. She slid her hands down his chest quickly, grabbing the bottom of his stupid t-shirt and tugging at it. "Off. Now." She breathed, ignoring her thundering heartbeat as she slipped both her hands underneath his stupid t-shirt.

Derek shivered thoroughly, his own skin crawling, begging him to shift. And without a second thought, this time, he quickly sat up, shedding his t-shirt and tossing it to the floor. And obviously, he really couldn't help, but stare (like a horny teenager) as she quickly sat up and removed her tank top, also tossing it to the floor.

"What?" Stiles asked, barely managing to stay cool here.

Derek quickly snapped out of his stupor. "Don't you EVER wear a bra?" He quirked a brow, also smirking slightly, his orbs now holding both lust AND amusement.

Stiles briefly narrowed her eyes before rolling them. "Yes. When I play lacrosse, I do." She stated simply, though, with a smug hint in her voice.

"Right." Derek's smirk only widened.

Again, Stiles rolled her eyes before reaching forward and wrapping her arms loosely around the back of his neck once again. "Shut up, Der-Bear." She retorted, grinning when he (rather predictably) gave an annoyed growl. And so what? So what if the teasing thing was kind of beginning to get to her head a little here? "Der-Bear" didn't seem to mind. Like, at all. God, damn. Was this really her life now? Making out with a hot werewolf guy? Because... God, damn.


	76. Chapter 76

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Do you want me to punch you in the face, again?

"Oh, come on, Stilinski! Stop being such a little pussy!" Lydia snapped, glaring over at the older girl.

"I am NOT being a little pussy." Stiles stated back, her voice as firm as her expression. "God, Red, you're SO rude." She grumbled, though, mainly to herself, because of course, the redhead knew that already, all too well.

Allison chuckled lightly, clearly amused by the entire situation.

"Allison, come on, back me up here, please?" Lydia shot the huntress an expectant look that implied she clearly wasn't asking.

Allison held up her hands in defence. "Sorry, Lyds. If Stiles doesn't wanna share the details of her sexy time with Der-Bear, then we should respect her wishes."

Lydia merely scoffed at the very idea.

"Thank you, Al -- wait -- what!?" Stiles practically choked over her words. "No! No. There were NO 'sexy times'." She glared over at the huntress.

Allison simply shot her a cheeky grin.

"Pff! Then why won't you tell us what happened last night!?" Lydia barked, now glaring back at the oldest girl.

"Ugh. Nothing happened!" Stiles snapped back, bored of repeating herself now. Seriously, why the frick did she agree to spend her Sunday at Red's house? Ugh. Never again.

"Well, I don't believe you." Lydia stated all too snootily. "And I don't have werewolf hearing to check and I don't need it, for that matter. I know SOMETHING happened between you and Derek last night. I know things, remember?"

"Uh, yeah. You know when people are about to die. That's it." Stiles reminded her with a "duh" expression.

Lydia glared back at her once again, looking rather offended, too. "That's not ALL I know!" She snapped angrily. "I mean, I know my abilities are a little shady sometimes, but I'm still working on that."

Stiles simply smirked in amusement.

"Okay, MAYBE there were no sexy times," Allison finally piped back up. "But I agree with Lydia, here -- there's DEFINTELY something different about you today. Your eyes are lighter, for a start. Like, literally, a lighter shade."

"What?" Stiles looked slightly confused as Lydia hopped off the bed to retrieve a small make-up mirror from her dresser before handing it over. Stiles eyes widened slightly. "How the hell did I not notice this?" She mumbled to herself.

"Maybe 'cause you've been a little preoccupied." Allison replied with a teasing grin.

Stiles snapped the mirror shut and glared over at the huntress -- whose grin simply widened in response. "Well, maybe it's got something to do with this spark thing going on inside of me."

"I know who'd like to be of inside YOU..." Lydia mumbled under her breath, barely managing to contain her straight face.

Allison's jaw dropped for a moment before she burst out laughing at that not-so quiet remark.

"Lydia Martin! My God! WHAT is WRONG with YOU!?" Stiles spluttered, her eyes widened fully and a heated blush spread up from her neck to her entire fricking face.

"Oh, please!" Lydia rolled her eyes. "Like you haven't already thought about it."

"Lydia..." Stiles shot her a "shut the fuck up" look. "Shut up..." She said, her voice barely calm now.

Allison let out another gleeful chuckle. "Please, Stiles?" She pouted slightly. "You don't have to tell us everything. Just, something. Anything."

Stiles groaned quietly, feeling her resolve slowly evaporating. She mentally cursed herself for even looking over at the (stupid) adorable huntress' face. "Okay, but --"

"Yes!" Lydia hissed, she and the huntress simultaneously letting out a girlish squeals and bouncing excitedly on the redhead's large Queen size bed.

"BUT," Stiles repeated, shooting them both a stern look. "Don't go spreading it around. At least, not yet. I kinda just wanna enjoy my privacy while I still can -- which I know, is asking A LOT when you're friends with a pack of werewolves." She rolled her eyes at that last part. Though, she still couldn't help smiling slightly to herself.

"Yeah, sure." Allison piped up instantly, nodding and shooting her a reassuring look. "Promise."

Lydia let out a huff, clearly annoyed, but nodded, anyway. "Fine. Whatever."

"Lydia," Stiles narrowed her eyes slightly.

Lydia let out another huff. "Fine. I promise... But can I at least write it down in my diary?"

"No. In case Aiden reads it. Or in case you LET him." Stiles glared at her.

Lydia rolled her eyes. "Fine."

"And you STILL have a diary?" Stiles asked, arching a brow. "What're you -- 8 years old?"

Lydia merely glared at her. "Stop stalling, you little pussy."

Stiles glared at her once again.

"Lyds! Stop! Otherwise she won't tell us shit!" Allison huffed, scowling over at the redhead.

Lydia simply rolled her eyes once again...

...Derek arched an expectant brow at his sister as she had previously shuffled out of the elevator and then plopped down lazily on the couch beside him. "And where have YOU been?" He asked calmly, though, clearly taunting her.

"Out." Cora replied simply as she yawned and then threw her feet up over her big brother's lap.

Derek wrinkled his nose, immediately shoving them off of it before shooting her a glare.

Cora simply rolled her eyes, though, she couldn't help smirking slightly.

"Out where?" Derek asked, arching both his brows at her this time. Not like he didn't know already. But payback was a bitch, he thought with a mental smug smirk.

And now it was Cora's turn to glare. "Just out."

"Uh-huh." Derek nodded, now smirking slightly. "With Isaac, though, right?" He teased, his smirk widening when she glared. "I can smell him on you." He noted, then with another wrinkle of his nose.

"Stop smelling me, then." Cora retorted, her glare darkening.

Derek chuckled lightly. "Don't look at me like that. You knew this was coming. Revenge is sweet."

"I hate you. A LOT." Cora snipped.

"I hate you more, brat." Derek replied, wearing another smug smirk. He then let out an annoyed sigh when the elevator door opened again, signalling he had more company. 'Please don't be Peter. Please don't be Peter. Please don't be Pe --'

"Evening, dear family."

'God, damn it. Why can't he just crawl back into the ground and die again already? Thanks for that again, Lydia.' Derek rolled his eyes.

"Yo, bitches!" Aiden chimed loudly, announcing his presence, as usual.

Derek groaned as he heard the twins bundle out of the elevator after his uncle, as well. "What the hell is this? Do I run a fricking hotel for werestrays now?" He snarked, glaring over at all three males.

Peter arched a brow. "How very rude." He then narrowed his eyes.

"'Werestrays'?" Ethan chuckled loudly. "Stiles' slang is starting rub off on you, huh?" He teased with a small grin as he plopped down on the smaller couch opposite.

Derek merely rolled his eyes at that before taking another sip of his beer.

"What the -- holy shit!" Aiden's eyes widened fully as they landed on the portable television sitting on the coffee table. "YOU own a TV!?" His shocked expression turned to Derek, who merely rolled his eyes again. "Holy shit! DEREK HALE owns a God damn TV!" He squealed excitedly. "He's shallow! Like US!" He grinned triumphantly at this new piece of information.

Ethan chuckled at that, Peter and Cora also smirking in amusement.

"Yeah, thanks." Derek mumbled, rolling his eyes, yet again...

...Lydia squealed. Loudly. Probably too loudly. Then again, she WAS a fricking banshee.

Allison squealed. Loudly. Squirming excitedly, bouncing on the redhead's bed with her arms flailing around ridiculously.

And again, Lydia squealed. Loudly. SO fricking loudly. Like seriously, Stiles wondered how the hell the windows of the entire house hadn't been shattered by the shrill noise, while she was certain that if any werewolves (or any other super-sensitive beings, for that matter) would hear.

And Stiles probably would have felt sorry for said other beings if she wasn't close to going completely fricking deaf herself right fricking now. "Oh, holy hell! PLEASE shut up! BOTH of you! My ears are freaking ringing!" She scalded both girly girls.

"Oh, my gosh! What is wrong with you, Stilinski!?" Lydia snapped, now glaring slightly. "Why aren't you screaming with us!? You're in love! Derek's in love! This is a big deal!"

"This is TOTALLY a big deal!" Allison piped up, clapping her hands like an excited (and still annoyingly adorable) sealion.

"Well, yeah... I know that..." Stiles mumbled, her cheeks instantly flushing heavily.

Both other girls let out another simultaneous squeal. Though, thankfully, they left it at that. For now, anyway.

"I can't believe he was cool about you macking on his little sister." Allison grinned cheekily.

Stiles glared at her. "I did NOT mack on her! I gave her mouth to mouth. She was dying, remember?"

"Uh-huh. But you still secretly enjoyed it." Lydia piped up, shooting her a knowing smirk.

Stiles glared at both of them before throwing her hands up and slipping off of the bed to retrieve her Converse. "That's it! I'm outta here!"

"Oh, come on!" Lydia wailed. "You haven't told us what happened after that!"

"And now you'll never know... Bye!" Stiles shot them both one last grin before making a swift exit...

...Derek shot his present company (excluding his baby sister, of course) one last glare before rising from his place on the couch and stalking towards the kitchenette, leaving them to take over his TV -- which Aiden practically had done already, anyway. He dumped the empty beer bottle into the trashcan and reached for another out of the fridge.

"Oh, go back. True Blood's on." Ethan piped up excitedly.

Aiden scoffed loudly. "No way. That show is gay."

Ethan glared at his so-called brother. "It's better than Punk'd." He retorted snootily.

Again, Aiden scoffed. "Please."

"Turn it back!" Ethan snapped before lunging for the small remote controller.

"Hey! Give it back, fucktard!" Aiden snarled, lunging back for his brother.

"Oh, for crying out loud." Peter rolled his eyes.

"Ugh. Seriously, guys?" Cora asked, shooting them both a withering look.

"He started it!" The twins simultaneously snapped, then glaring at each other. "No! YOU started it!" They both snarled in unison once again, glaring at each, once again. "No! You -- God, damn it!"

Cora chuckled in amusement, earning a glare from both twins. "No, no. Please continue. This is actually pretty entertaining."

Peter chuckled, sitting back beside his niece and watching the "show".

Derek smirked in amusement to himself as he twisted the cap off of his fresh beer. And as he tossed that, too, into the trashcan, he suddenly felt his phone vibrate silently in his back pocket. He quickly reached for it with his free hand, his pulse picking up instantly as he realised who it was.

From Bambi --  
'Evening, sourwolf. :)  
I'm bored.  
Are you bored, too?  
Maybe we can be bored together?'

Derek smiled to himself as he quickly replied before sending it.

To Bambi --  
'Bored. Annoyed. And missing you. :)  
Wanna come over?'

"What're you smiling for?" Cora asked, suddenly appearing behind him.

Derek mentally cursed himself before turning around to shoot her an annoyed scowl. "None of your business." He muttered, quickly shoving his phone back into his pocket -- and mentally cursing again as it vibrated again.

"Uh-huh." Cora smirked, shooting him a knowing look.

Derek rolled his eyes, grabbing his phone again before turning his back on her in a not-so subtle attempt to hint at "go the fuck away."

From Bambi --  
'Ah, I miss you, too, sourwolf.  
I'll see you in 10 minutes. ;)'

"Awh, 'Bambi'? You've got Stiles down as Bambi on your contact list." Cora cooed as he hovered over his shoulder.

"What the hell, Cora?" Derek glared at her before quickly shoving his phone back into his pocket.

"Oh, my God. That is so cute." Cora grinned, ignoring his ever-darkening glare. "It's also hilarious. But it's SO cute."

"That's it!" Derek snapped. "Out! Everyone out now!"

"Oh, come on! We won't listen in. We promise." Peter chimed in, smirking mercilessly at his nephew.

Derek turned his glare to his stupid, annoying uncle. "YOU especially -- out."

Peter simply scoffed at his low tone.

"Do you want me to punch you in the face, again?" Derek asked calmly, raising a brow and shooting the oldest wolf a pointed look.

Peter huffed loudly before finally hauling himself off of the couch.

Derek smirked smugly as Peter glared back while stalking back towards the elevator. "Alright, and the rest of you." He added, shooting the twins a pointed look.

"But Xena's on, dude!" Aiden wailed, shooting him a pleading look.

Ethan rolled his eyes, grumbling curse words at his twin brother as he rose from the other couch and sauntered towards the elevator, as well.

Derek sighed tiredly. "Just take the damn thing with you and get out already." He grunted.

"Holy shit? Seriously?" Aiden's orbs widened excitedly. "Yes! Thank you! You are awesome!" He chimed before snatching the portable television from the coffee table and the remote controller along with it.

"Oh, and you break it, you buy me a new one." Derek added, shooting him a warning look.

"Yeah. No problem, man." Aiden waved a hand of dismissal before bounding towards the elevator after the other two males.

Derek glanced back to his baby sister. "You, too, brat. OUT."

"Why? Is Stiles coming over?" Cora asked, wearing an all too innocent grin.

Derek glared at her once more. "You read the whole thing, so don't pretend." He muttered.

Cora chuckled. "Fine. Whatever. I'm outta here." She announced before sauntering towards the large mental slide-along door to take the stairs on her own instead. "By the way, I read ALL of your texts this morning, while you were passed out on the couch."

Derek growled loudly, taking a threatening step towards her.

Cora shrieked loudly before disappearing in a flash, the sound of her laughter echoing in the stairwell as she went.


	77. Chapter 77

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Let me taste you..."

Stiles hauled the metal door across only to see that the loft was completely empty. "Derek?" She called out as she lazily shuffled into the large room. She frowned slightly in confusion upon receiving no response before going to try again. "De --"

"Hey, Bambi."

Stiles squealed, jumping in her fricking skin before instantly swirling around.

"Sorry." Derek smirked lightly, not looking very sorry at all.

Stiles scoffed lightly. "No, you're not." She muttered as she tried to calm her racing heart down.

"I am." Derek insisted. "But I still couldn't help myself. You scare so easily. It's cute... And funny." He added that last part with another smirk.

Stiles shot him a half-hearted glare -- because, okay, it was kind of true. Okay, it was totally true. But whatever. "Oh, it is, is it?" She arched a brow. "Fine." She huffed. "Then, I guess I'll just be leaving now." She concluded before turning on her heel and heading back towards the stairs.

"Oh, no, you don't." Derek was in front of her within a split second. He placed his hands gently, but firmly on either side of her waist to keep her from moving. "I cleared the loft out for you." He told her with a pointed look.

Stiles arched a brow, now slightly confused again. "What'd you mean?" She glanced around at the furniture (or lack of, therefore, anyway) clearly misunderstanding.

Derek smiled in amusement. "I kicked everyone out."

Stiles glanced back to him, looking slightly surprised. "Oh, yeah? You did?" She grinned lightly in amusement as she rested her hands flat again his (rock fricking hard) stomach.

Derek ignored the sudden rush of blood through his entire body as the simple touch. "Yeah." He offered, though, just barely.

"And who is exactly is 'everyone'?" Stiles asked with a curious glance.

"Peter." Derek muttered in disdain.

Stiles chuckled, both at his answer and the look on his face. "Why does that NOT surprise me?"

Derek rolled his eyes, though, he couldn't help smirking slightly. "And the twins. And Cora." He scowled. "I let Aiden take my TV." He grumbled mostly to himself as he finally registered that little fact. He had just wanted everyone out before Stiles had arrived, he had been too fricking distracted. Ugh. 'If that asshole breaks my TV --'

Stiles chuckled again, her eyes lit up in pure amusement. "Why?" She asked, shooting him a "why the hell would you ever do such a thing!?' look.

"'Cause..." Derek sighed in defeat. "To be honest, I just wanted them all to leave... Peter, especially." He scowled again. And okay, it wasn't the entire truth, but it was close enough.

Stiles grinned. "Again -- why does that NOT surprise me?"

Derek rolled his eyes. "He's annoying. They're ALL annoying." He added that last part as if he had just realised it.

"True, but STILL not as annoying as ME, though." Stiles chimed proudly. "I'm the fricking MASTER of irritation. I think my last name may actually mean 'annoying as frig' in Polish." She joked with a small, but cheesy grin.

Derek simply rolled his eyes, wearing a small, amused grin as he finally just gave in an leant forward to FINALLY kiss his mate. His hands gripped at her waist, pulling her closer as he moved his lips slowly over her own. And when her hands crawled further down to grab at the bottom of his shirt as her blunt teeth nipped at his bottom lip, he let out a low, rumbling growl of appreciation.

Stiles moaned quietly against his lips when she felt his hand slide around and down to squeeze her ass. She forced herself to pull away for moment, mainly to catch her breath. "Take it off." She whispered, gently tugging at his shirt again.

"Stiles," Derek frowned slightly.

"It's okay." Stiles assured him by reaching forward and pressing her lips briefly back to his. "I just... I need to..." She breathed deeply, already feeling her skin crawl wonderfully. "I need to feel you... I... I need you... Now..."

Derek didn't really know what to say to that. He knew all of the things he DID want to say, but he didn't think now was quite the time. Though, the wolf within severely disagreed, of course. 'Fuck...' He leaned down, his lips moving hungrily over her own, his tongue pressing against her own.

Stiles gasped against his mouth when he grabbed her ass and pulled her up. Instictively, her legs wrapped around his waist, her ankles locking around his own ass. Her arms reached up, linking around the back of his neck and pulling him even closer.

After a few more moments of devouring her lips with his teeth and tongue, Derek reluctantly pulled away. He smirked slightly in satisfaction when he heard her let out the faintest, little whining sound of protest in the back of her throat.

"What?" Stiles breathed, now looking slightly worried.

Derek's smirk simply widened as he leaned forward, placing a quick, but soft kiss to her lips. "Do you trust me?" He asked, now looking at her with that ever-serious, ever-intense gaze of his.

Stiles frowned, now looking mostly confused at the sudden question. Her mind briefly flashed back to the first time he had ever asked her that, the time he literally threw her up into the fricking air. Totally worth it, though. Pretty much like all the other times he had saved her life or helped her save someone else's life. She then smiled at that thought alone and finally nodded. "With my life..."

...Allison frowned, now looking deeply concerned as she glanced up at her father. "Dad? Who was that?" She asked warily, motioning down to the phone gripped tightly in his right hand.

Chris stayed silent, just allowing himself a few moments to just calm the fuck down. God, how the hell could this even be happening? After everything this family had been through. Ugh. "He's back, Allison." He stated, his voice filled with as much regret as it was laced with venom.

"What? Who's back?" Allison asked, her concern only growing more by the moment, along with the dread now slowly creeping in.

Chris sighed deeply, shooting his daughter a deeply troubled look. "Gerard..."

...Stiles chuckled as the werewolf dropped her back onto his bed. She shoved him lightly off of her and quickly removed her oversized t-shirt, leaving her torso bare to him once again. She flushed lightly under his rather hungry-looking gaze, nervously nibbling at her bottom lip in the process.

Derek smirked slightly as he then rid himself of his own Henley shirt. He crawled back over her, his hands resting either side of her head and his face hovering mere inches from her own.

Stiles ignored her stupid, racing pulse as she linked her arms around the back of his neck, pulling him down for another heated kiss. She pulled him ever-closer, his skin pressing against her own. She moaned against his mouth as she felt his large, warm hands slowly sliding across her stomach and up to cup under both her breasts.

With a soft growl, Derek pulled away, panting lightly. He pressed a trail of feather-light kisses across her jaw and down her neck as his hands gently continued to squeeze at her creamy-skinned, soft mounds. He then let out another, louder growl as she arched her back and pushed her hips up against his. "Fuck..." He hissed against her earlobe before giving it an affectionate nip.

Stiles shivered violently, her arms instantly unlocking from around his neck, her hands quickly, but purposefully sliding down his torso, feeling every single little, defined muscle as they went. Her heart raced, her pulse ringing in her ears as she finally reached his belt-buckle.

"Stiles," Derek whispered, using a hand to gently grab at her wrist. "Stop."

"But --" Stiles frowned, disappointment instantly flooding through her every fibre. 'SERIOUSLY!?'

Derek quickly silenced both her words and her doubts as he swooped in for another hungry kiss, his tongue licking passed the seam of her soft, warm (cherry-tasting -- must have been the chapstick she used or something, he thought absentmindedly) lips. He pulled away once again after only a few moments, his lips quickly returning to her neck. He kissed his way down her flesh, leaving quick, wet kisses down the valley of her breasts before suddenly sucking her entire right nipple into his mouth.

Stiles inhaled sharply, her skin prickling with desire. Her hands gripped at his belt for some sort of support as she began to feel that familiar tingling sensation between her thighs. And when she felt his gently bite down, she quivered, her back arching as she let out a soft moan. "Derek... Fuck... Please..." If she were in her non-horny frame of mind right now, she would have been embarrassed by how very hussy-like she had sounded then. But right now, she REALLY didn't give a flying fuck. She lifted her legs up, wrapping them around his waist, her socked-heels digging into his ass cheeks.

Derek groaned rather loudly -- and that was at the combination of his hard-on pressing into the warmth of his thighs and the Holiest of fricking Holy scents that he had ever fricking smelt. "Fuck, Stiles... Fuck, you smell SO damn good..." He rumbled, his voice low and incredible hoarse. And he knew he kept telling her that, but it was fucking true, okay!?

Stiles merely continued to pant loudly like a fricking bitch in heat -- 'Really, Stilinski? You're cracking dog jokes NOW!?' And again with the smelling her arousal thing. Which WAS creepy... Technically, anyway. But Stiles was obviously just fucked up, because it really did turn her on. Like, seriously, on so many levels. Ugh.

Derek quickly hauled himself back up to claim her lips with his own, this time slower and softer. He pulled away after just a few moments, his black orbs now staring intensely back down at her as he rested his forehead lightly against her own. "Stiles," And fuck -- could he REALLY do this without losing it completely? God, he fucking well hoped so. "Let me taste you..."


	78. Chapter 78

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I liked the plan where we all run away."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not all that good with sexual scenes, but lemme know how I did?  
> And mostly, this story is just for fluffy fun! (:

Isaac's eyes widened at what he had just heard. "I'm sorry... Did I just hear you right?" He asked warily, clearly trying to process the information.

Chris sighed tiredly and nodded. "You did... I'm sorry." He said, sounding somewhere in between apologetic and still rather shameful. Shameful that he had ever called that disgusting, evil excuse of a man his father.

"Oh, well, this is a just great." Isaac commented, his tone laced with bitter sarcasm. And rightly so.

"You spoke to him?" Lydia asked, somehow maintaining calm. For now, anyway. She knew that Jackson was safe from that crazy, old bastard now. But were the rest of them?

Chris nodded. "The smug, old bastard called me on a private number." He explained.

"What did he say, exactly?" Melissa asked as she walked back into her living room, handing Isaac a soda before she settled back down on the couch beside her son.

"All he said was that it was good to hear my voice and that Allison and I would be seeing him real soon." Chris scoffed loudly. "And if he actually thinks that I'd ever let my daughter anywhere near him again, he REALLY needs to think again."

"Agreed." Scott finally piped up, his voice low and stern as he continued to glare at the coffee table in front of him.

"Scott, it's okay." Allison said, her voice soft.

"No, it's not." Scott scowled over at her. "Last time we dealt with Gerard, he used one of our own against us AND he beat the hell outta my best friend just to send me a fricking 'message'."

"But," Lydia began timidly. "He can't hurt us... Right? ...I mean, he's alone... Right?"

"Even if he is, he's still not stupid enough to come anywhere near Beacon Hills again without a back-up plan." Chris pointed out.

"Agreed." Isaac piped up this time, nodding in agreement at the hunter.

"God, do we EVER get a break!?" Lydia barked with an annoyed scowl planted across her stunning features.

"Nope." Isaac chirped, grinning sheepishly when the redhead glared at him...

...Stiles' heart raced hard and fast as the werewolf tossed her jeans to the floor beside his bed. Her cheeks flushed heavily under his intense gaze as he slowly crawled back across the bed until he was hovering over her again. And when he leaned down to kiss her, she automatically threw her arms around the back of his neck and pulled him as closely as possible.

Derek pulled his lips from hers after a few more moments, trailing more heated kisses down the valley between her breasts. As his mouth and hands continued to wander and explore every inch of her body, he still managed to keep his ears keen, listening and enjoying every tiny sound she made.

Stiles gasped lightly and moaned quietly when he gently tugged at her left nipple before sucking it into his searing mouth. Her hands quickly slid from his neck, resting on his shoulders in an attempt to keep herself from moving, too much, anyway. And then, holy fucking hell. She let out a louder, more surprised gasp when she felt his large, warm hand slide down her stomach and down to cup her mound. And holy fuck, even through her Superman boy-shorts, even if he was barely touching her, it still felt so fucking good. Her heart skipped several beats, her entire body shivering lightly and then tensing as he gently squeezed.

Derek lifted his head from her chest, feeling her slightly ridged underneath him. He frowned, looking slightly worried. "Just relax." He rasped. He leaned up, placing a soft, almost reassuring kiss to her lips. "Do you wanna stop?" He asked, while slowly removing his hand from between her thighs.

"N-no." Stiles whispered, shaking her head lightly. She quickly cleared her throat, seeing the slightly concerned look in his pretty greeny-blue orbs. She slid her arms back around his neck. "No, I don't wanna stop." She mumbled before pulling him down for another kiss.

And obviously, getting with the program, Derek gave her one last heated and hungry kiss before trailing his kisses back down again. And this time, he didn't stop as he passed the valley of her breasts.

Stiles pulse was ringing in her ears as she felt his wet, hot mouth making its way down past her navel, his hands sliding around to grab her asscheeks. Her breathing then hitched tightly when she felt him gently press his nose over the apex of her thighs, loudly and shamelessly smelling her arousal. And holy fucking shit -- she just about nearly frigging lost her mind when she felt his mouth over her already aching heat.

Derek completely ignored the fact that he was quite literally purring against her sweet pussy right now and instead focussed on sucking lightly at the wet patch already formed in her (adorable) panties. And there were only two thoughts bouncing around in his mind right now -- 'Holy fuck, yes! Finally!' and 'How the fuck am I still keeping my shit together here!?'

"F-fuck... Derek..." Stiles panted heavily, her heart racing as she suddenly felt extremely hot in her own skin.

And as that rather broken whine escaped her lips, Derek instantly pulled away and with a soft snarl he extended his claws and shred down the sides of her shorts. And when she shot him a VERY half-hearted glare, he simply smirked before tossing the now tattered, blue material to the floor, with the rest of her clothes...

...Lydia nodded curtly, shooting Melissa a grateful smile before raising the glass of Chardonnay to her plump, ever-red lips. "Mmm. VERY nice. Thank you, Melissa. Just what I needed."

Melissa chuckled as she sat down on the couch beside the redhead, a glass in her own hand, as well. "You're very welcome, Lydia." She chirped before taking a small sip, too.

"So, what's the plan, Stan?" Lydia chirped, glancing over at the True Alpha.

Scott sighed tiredly before replying. "We regroup." He explained. "I want a headcount of the entire pack. Even you, mom. And John. And, God, help us, Peter and Deucalion, as well."

Both Lydia and Isaac wrinkled their noses in disgust at that last part, while both Chris and Melissa shared an amused smirk.

Allison chuckled, shaking her head at the others before turning back to her mate. "When?"

"Tonight. Now, really." Scott stated.

Allison nodded. "So, we call the others. And then what?" She asked curiously.

Scott shrugged, sighing loudly. "I don't know, yet. But we'll figure something out."

Allison nodded again. "We always do." She smiled reassuringly.

Scott smiled half-hearted. "Let's just make sure everyone is still safe before we decide what we're gonna do."

"I liked the plan were we all run away." Isaac piped up.

Lydia snorted. "That was YOUR plan."

Isaac shrugged. "I still like it."

Lydia merely rolled her eyes before taking another sip of her wine. And it DID help to calm her nerves. Thank fuck for man-made miracles, that was for sure, she thought.

Scott smirked in amusement at the two before digging into his pocket for his phone. "I'm gonna call Stiles. I'll handle the Sheriff, too. Or... Well, let Stiles handle him." He grinned sheepishly when his mother rolled her eyes at him. "Lydia, call Aiden. Allison, you call Ethan. Get him to call Danny, too."

Allison nodded once again. "Right." She chirped, grabbing her own phone from her pocket and hurrying towards the kitchen to make the calls.

"Eh, Chris, could you maybe call Derek for me?" Scott asked, grinning timidly.

Chris rolled his eyes, but couldn't help smirking in amusement. "Fine..."

...And while both their phones were lying downstairs on the table in the loft, both ringing constantly and in vain --

\-- Derek's breathing hitched lightly as his eyes trailed slowly over her entire naked form, taking in every little detail. His gaze flicked back up to hers, the corners of his lips twitching slightly. "So beautiful..." He whispered before reaching down for another kiss. "Just relax." He repeated, murmuring the words against her lips.

Stiles merely nodded and forced herself to relax, pretty much unable to do much else right now.

Derek shot her a small, though, rather wicked grin before shifting back down the bed, his body hovering over hers at all times. He slowly and purposefully slid his hands down her sides and around to her ass again, gripping gently as he pulled her closer. He could barely hear her pulse racing over his own ringing loudly in his sensitive ears as he slid his hands under her thighs and slowly lifted them over his shoulders.

Stiles gasped loudly, her entire body jerking when she suddenly felt the flat side of his wet, warm tongue take one long swipe of the entire length of her slit. She shivered lightly as she heard him let out a soft hum of appreciation, her heart then stuttering when he repeated the action once more. "Shit..." She breathed, her skin crawling and her nipples suddenly aching hard.

As best he could, Derek somehow managed to ignore his aching hard-on, the corners of his lips even quirking slightly as he listened to her heavy pants and small moans. He slid his hands back to her ass cheeks, gripping them gently as he leaned down for another taste; a proper taste. He groaned softly as he dipped the tip of his tongue into her soaking entrance, the tip of his nose softly brushing against her swollen clit.

"D-Derek..." Stiles' breathed hitched, her heart thudding heavily at the brief contact, along with every little sensation washing through her veins and crawling under her skin. She pressed her head back into the soft mattress, her hands blindly reaching down and immediately landing on his shoulders with a tight grip.

With a small groan, Derek licked his lips, then reaching up and clamping them over her clit before giving it a light suck.

"Derek, fuck..." Stiles moaned lightly, her heart stuttering at the overwhelming pulsing sensation between her legs right now.

Derek pulled away a little with a small moan of his own. "Talk, Stiles." He told her, barely managing to breathe the words out. His gaze flicked up, his dick twitching as he saw her deeply flushed face, her eyes shut and her chest rising and falling again rapidly. "I wanna hear you." He whispered before leaning down to lightly circle her entrance with the tip of his tongue. He slowly then licked his way into her core, revelling as more of her essence flowed onto his tongue. He groaned loudly as he pulled away, licking at his lips shamelessly before taking her aching, little bud into his hungry mouth again.

"Derek, God, d-don't s-stop..." Stiles whined (also rather shamelessly). Her entire body tensed continuously at every flicker of his tongue as he continued to suck. And again, holy fucking shit -- she felt him pull away just as his right hand slid back around to rest just under her stomach, then slowly sliding down and replacing his mouth with his thumb. "D-Derek..." Her breath hitched once again as she felt him slowly circling her clit, her hips instinctively pushing towards him.

Now that he had finally gotten a taste, Derek really couldn't help himself as he leaned back down began to lick at her soaking warmth, his thumb still circling her clit at the same time. He pulled away after a few more moments of enjoying her loud skin-crawling pants and dick-twitching moans and groaned loudly as he savoured her for a second. His thumb still circling her, he slid his other hand around, a small smile playing on his lips as he ran his fingers over the small amount of soft hair placed over her mound. "So perfect..." He whispered, though, mainly to himself.

Stiles' eyes shot open as she felt his hand slide down before slipping his index finger inside of her soaking entrance. She gasped loudly, her fingernails digging into his shoulders, almost piercing his flesh now. And okay, it was NOTHING like when she fingered herself. Because holy fucking shitballs! Like, seriously, here! And -- "O-ooh... Mm..." She arched her back automatically, her entire body shivering violently when she felt the tip of his finger finally reach that first special spot inside of her. Like, seriously -- how the fuck!? It had taken her frigging ages to find it!

Derek mentally smirked, pulling out before slowly pushing two fingers and again, mentally smirking as he watched the slide in with great ease. He leaned down, finally taking his thumb away and replacing it with his mouth instead. He sucked lightly at her clit as he simply continued to slowly pump his two fingers inside of her, just enjoying the softness and warmth and slickness. He groaned lightly in response to rather loud whine that escaped her mouth, enjoying her shiver as the sound vibrated against her swollen, hard bud.

And, holy fucking shit, yet again, Stiles nearly fricking lost herself when she felt him easily relocate her g-spot. "Derek... Mm... Fuck... F-fuck... Mmnnh..." Her breathing hitched once again, her heart jack-hammering against her chest, almost painfully now.

Derek pulled his mouth away, glancing up at her with completely jet black orbs now and his dick straining painfully in his jeans. "Talk, Stiles. Talk. I wanna hear you. I NEED to hear you." He told her again, his voice low and husky and his tone almost slightly pleading now.

And God! He chooses NOW to make her wanna talk!? Ugh! Stiles almost sobbed out her response, the only response she could think of right now. "J-just don't s-stop..." She gasped as he pressed down a little and moaned loudly when he began to rub in gentle, but firm circular motions. "Oooh -- D-Derek..." Her hips jerked forward, pressing her further down onto his fingers.

Derek groaned loudly, leaving forward and placing a short, but sweet kiss over her clit. He then placed his thumb over her swollen nub, and again, began to rub at it in firm and slightly quicker circular motions, also using that hand to hold her down. He then pressed down over her g-spot before proceeding to rub over it in a 'come hither' motion.

"Derek... Mm... Yes... Don't stop..." Stiles panted heavily, certain that her heart would implode at any given moment. Not that she gave a crap, that is. Hell, no!

Derek ignored the pinching of her nails in his shoulders as he picked up his pace with both hands. He groaned loudly, his dick twitching painfully once again when he began to feel her tighten slightly around his fingers. "Fuck... So tight..." He groaned again, leaning forward to lick at her clit. "Come on, Stiles, I wanna see you..." He whispered, rubbing his thumb against her in time with his fingers. "Cum for me..."

"Oh, G-God, mm, mmmngh, Derek, I, fuck, I'm --" Stiles breathed out, her voice rather high-pitched now.

Derek let out a low, rumbling growl as he moved his fingers faster, both against and inside of her. "Fuck, yes." He hissed. "Cum for me, baby..."

"Derek!" And yep, that was it for Stiles. What with the combination of his low, hoarse and pleading tone and the feel of his hands on her. Her entire body suddenly tensed and then she was certain her sight had whited out for a few moments there. "O-oooooh, oh, G-God --" Her heart stuttered, her skin crawling and tingling at the same time.

"Oh, shit..." Derek whispered, his eyes widened in both amazement and fascination.

"O-ooooh, D-Derek..." Stiles whimpered loudly, her entire body shaking by now.

And somehow, Derek still managed to keep his fingers moving, his gaze still glued to her, literally soaking his entire fricking mattress. And after a few more moments, he finally slowed down when her body finally gave a couple of quick jerks before slumping altogether.

"Holy f-fuck... W-what did y-you do!?" Stiles stuttered, her body giving another random jerk.

"Fuck, Stiles." Derek let out another low, rumbling growl, quickly pulling his fingers out and holding his hand up to take a closer look.

Stiles gasped softly when he slowly lifted his fingers to his mouth, his tongue darting out to taste her essence.

Derek let out another appreciative hum before shooting her a small, but rather cheeky grin. "I just made you squirt."


	79. Chapter 79

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "And it's all Hale's stupid fault!"

"Okay," Lydia chirped as she sauntered rather sluggishly (drunkenly) back into the McCall's living room."Aiden's on his way -- said he's pick up Ethan and Danny from Jungle along the way."

Scott nodded absentmindedly in response, while his phone was still pressed to his right ear. "God, damn it! Stiles isn't answering." He looked slightly panicked. "WHY isn't she answering!? Ugh! She never answers her fricking phone lately! And it's all Hale's stupid fault!"

"Well, before my dad left to pick up Deucalion and Peter -- he said that Derek wasn't answering, either." Allison added, smiling in amusement to herself at the slightly jealous hint in her boyfriend's tone of voice.

Isaac scoffed loudly as he sauntered back into the living room. "That's PROBABLY, because they're together right now. I just rang Cora and she told me that she, Peter and the twins left them alone at the loft about an hour and a half ago... Well, actually, she said that Derek practically threw them all out. And in a hurry... Aaand, I bet I can guess why... Y'know, not that I need to, that is..." He added that last part with a highly amused grin.

Scott quickly pulled his phone away from his ear and hung up. "Okay, ew. A LOT of 'ew'... Seriously, like -- a hundred and fifty-one toilets, filled to the brim, with some more 'ew'." He muttered, wrinkling his nose slightly in disgust.

"You think they're making little werewolf slash whatever-the-hell-Stilinski-actually-is babies right now, as we speak?" Lydia asked, giggling loudly at the mere naughtiness of her own suggestion. "'Caaause IIIII dooo!" She sang with a slightly sozzled grin.

"What!? No! No. Why would you even suggest that, Evil-Red? Ugh. Nope. Not even. No way..." Scott scowled at the redhead for even asking such a question -- even if he knew she was also doing it to wind him up for her own petty (and drunken) entertainment. And, oh-fucking-well -- so fricking what if he didn't find the topic of his best friend's; his freaking, forever-long soul-sister; sister from another Mister; sissy from another Missy -- and, okay, he got a little carried away there -- but seriously!? Forgive him if he didn't want to joke or even talk about his bro's fricking virginity. Like, come on! Seriously, now! Couldn't anyone else feel or even understand his pain here? Even if they could, they either hid it well or really [b]did[/b] find it utterly hilarious. 'Thanks, guys. As your Alpha -- I'm REALLY feeling your love and support here... Ugh. I'm WAY too soft on them. Well, accept for my sweet and perfect Allison. She's an exception, obviously. Oh, and mom -- 'cause let's face it -- she's probably the only person I'm actually terrified of pissing off... Pff. At least it's good to know that none of my so-called dad's "I'm-an-asshole-just-because"-genes got passed down to me... Huh. That actually really does make me feel a little bit better...'

Lydia arched a questioning brow at the True Alpha, clearly noticing the doubt in his dark brown orbs -- because after all, she was completely drunk out her mind, NOT as dumb as a shit-stained door-handle!

Scott's scowl only deepened as his thoughts suddenly got the better of him, again. And that seemed to happen a God, damn lot. Since like, he could even remember. Ugh. "Well... They better not be, anyway..." He huffed, shaking himself of such a ridiculous thought. "No. No, I know my Sty-Sty." He said with a fond grin -- because, fuck, he had almost forgotten that childhood nickname -- and sounding a whole lot more confidant, this time. "And I know that Stiles is a good girl. Okay -- she's a little trouble-maker at times... Okay, most of the time. But she's harmless, she always has been. She ALSO knows that her dad would TOTALLY flip a GIGANTIC shit... By shooting Derek in the face... Repeatedly... And besides, she knows it's illegal, too... Ugh, for now, that is... Again; more 'ew'." He grumbled, frowning slightly. "And anyway, I know I can't protect her forever. BUT I also know that's she new to all THAT kinda stuff... Aaand Derek's knows that I would LITERALLY rip his head off." He concluded with a smug grin.

Lydia scoffed loudly, instantly dismissing every single word that he had said by shooting him a "what-the-fuck-ever, McCall!" look. 'And THIS guy is supposed to be an almighty, all-knowing True Alpha? Pff! Only in the flesh, 'cause... Damn...' She winced, suddenly feeling slightly sympathetic towards the rather docile werewolf.

"Yeah, right, Scott. Dream on, Alpha-man. Seriously." Isaac chuckled, clearly amused. "Like Derek even gives a shit about your threats. I mean, no offence, you're stronger than him now, yeah, but he'd still probably kick your ass, 'cause he's got the moves, dude. He's been training for this shit his entire fricking life. And what you call his misery, I call his motivation. Which I know I'm right about, 'cause before he ever figured out his feelings for Stiles, he told me that the anger he felt over his family's murder was his anchor." He explained with a pointed and rather smug expression.

Like seriously, Scott thought in annoyance, did he want a fricking a medal for that!? Ugh!

"Exactly." Lydia nodded in agreement.

"Stiles was right, Isaac -- you're such a fucking suck-up." Scott snipped with a bitter smirk.

Isaac narrowed his eyes slightly before grinning widely in amusement. "Whatever." He shrugged. "But I bet Stiles is the one doing ANY sucking right about now..."

Lydia howled with laughter, whereas Allison at least tried to contain her amusement, though, just barely.

"Lahey! I will fucking END you, you curly-headed FUCK!" Scott hissed, only causing both Isaac and Lydia to laugh in complete and utter amusement. "Ugh! Can we PLEASE just STOP talking about this now?" He whined, glancing helplessly between the Beta, the huntress and the drunk-ass banshee.

"Oh, Scotty-baby, only, 'cause you know that it's true." Allison added, wearing an all too innocent smirk.

Scott shot her a pleading look. "Not, YOU, too."

Allison's smirk simply widened...

...Stiles gasped lightly in surprise when the werewolf slid his hands around to her asscheeks before lifting her up with him. Her hands wrapped around the back of his neck as he shifted himself across the mattress to sit at the edge of his bed before pulling her naked form into his (unfortunately -- still jean-clad) lap. And when he pulled her bare chest tightly against his own, she wrapped her legs around his waist without a second thought.

Derek's jaw tightened slightly as he felt her hardened nipples brush against his own chest, his skin crawling oh-so wonderfully. He slid his hands around her waist, then slowly and purposefully up her back. He stopped at her shoulder blades, his hands pressed flat and pulling her closer to him, pressing her skin to firmly against his own.

Stiles' arms tightened around his neck, one of her hands reaching up a little, her fingers playing softly with his short, silky, black tufts of hair -- and also smiling lightly to herself when she felt him let out a soft sigh against the crook of her neck. Keeping her body pressed close to his own, she pulled her head back just enough to glance up at him. Her chest clenched slightly as his black, glazed over orbs slowly met her own and -- God, damn, he really was beautiful. Actually, he was probably the most beautiful creature she had ever had both the fortune and pleasure of laying her dopey, brown eyes on. Seriously, though -- how the frig did she get so lucky?

Derek gulped silently as he fought with completely losing himself in her deep, whiskey pools. And as he predicted, he was going to fail, epically. Like he always did, and knew he always would. But he was okay with that. In fact, he was more than fricking okay with that. So, as he felt himself crumble under her intense gaze, instead, he leaned slowly closer, until his lips were moving softly over her own again.

Stiles let out a soft moan against his mouth as he nipped gently at her bottom lip before licking his way in between the seam of her lips. She shivered in utter delight as she felt his hands slowly sliding down her back to gently grab at both her asscheeks. She then broke their kiss with a loud, pleasantly surprised gasp when he pulled her hips tightly against his own. Her legs tightened around his waist in response, her aching, wet core gently brushing over the rather large tent in his jeans.

Derek groaned quietly, panting softly against her lips, his forehead resting lightly over her own. He gave her ass a another gentle squeeze, then using his grip to grind her hips slowly against his own. And when he felt her begin to grind slowly back against him in response, he let out another low groan, his head falling limp against her shoulder as he began to pant heavily against the crook of her neck.

Stiles shivered, her skin crawling wonderfully at the combination of his hot, heavy breath against her neck, the feeling of his large hands covering almost the entire expanses of her asscheeks and from the sensation sparking up in her nether regions (again -- God, damn) as they both continued to slowly move against one another.

And okay, Derek thought that maybe he deserved a little more credit here -- because he was seriously about to fricking explode. And he had held on, for what felt like a fucking eternity. The straining in his pants was almost un-fucking-bearable. And the rather stunning "display" he had witnessed mere minutes ago REALLY wasn't helping him, either. And holy fuck, all over again, he thought as the memory repeated in his mind. And again, tonight seemed to be a night of firsts -- for it was the first time he had ever made a girl fricking squirt! Seriously, he thought, he would have to ask her about that later...

...Scott growled in annoyance as he shoved his phone back into his jacket pocket. "Alright! That's it!" He snapped finally, shooting up from the couch. "I'm going to find Stiles." He announced boldly. He then glanced around at the others. "Anybody wanna come with me?" He asked, looking all too hopeful.

And predictably, that earned a few chuckles and amused glances from the rest of the pack.

"No fucking way, dude." Aiden snorted. "If she's with Derek, then I REALLY don't feel like becoming mentally scarred for the rest of my life."

Isaac sniggered. "-- While ALSO being beaten to death by Derek in the process." He added.

"Exactly." Aiden smirked and nodded. "See? Isaac gets it." He added, shooting his Alpha a smug, yet still highly amused smirk.

Scott glared as the others simply laughed. "Fine. Thanks for nothing." He huffed before stalking towards the front door.

"On the other hand --" Lydia piped up. "Who here REALLY wants to miss Derek beating the crap outta Scott?" She chirped.

"Well, baby, when you say it like THAT..." Aiden trailed off purposefully, wearing a small, but rather wicked grin.

"You're driving! Let's go, wolfman!" Lydia grinned back at her boyfriend before the couple quickly rose together and scrambled out of the McCall house after their Alpha.

"Ugh. Losers." Ethan rolled his eyes at the pair, Danny chuckling in amusement as his werewolf boyfriend snuggled (adorably) back into his side.

"I think maybe I should go after him..." Allison glanced after her boyfriend, looking slightly concerned. "What if he walks in on them? Stiles would kill me!"

Isaac, Chris, Ethan and Aiden all laughed out loud at that.

Melissa, however, arched a brow. "Don't you worry about Stiles with Scott, honey." She told the worried huntress. "She'll put him in his place. Stubborn little turd that he is." She added with a small, but fond grin.

Allison smiled in amusement and while she DID feel slightly better, she still felt slightly concerned also.


	80. Chapter 80

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I'm still a God, damn virgin, asswipe!"

Stiles shivered breathlessly, her skin prickling with heat as the werewolf kept a firm grip on her backside. And yes, it was all fucking fantastic, every single little sensation. But after the way he had nearly caused her fricking brain to explode (let alone other parts of her body...) Stiles knew that she wasn't going to cum again. At least, not just by fricking dry-humping, anyway. But that was okay. In fact, that was more than just okay. In fact, maybe this was even better. For now, anyway. Just this feeling now; the feeling of his heated and slightly sweaty flesh rubbing against her own, the feeling his large, rough hands grabbing at her asscheeks and the way he would let a soft groan slip every now and then, followed by a an affectionate nip to her left shoulder. Yes. Yes, it felt fucking good. Almost as good as actually cuming -- by the hand of her sourwolf, that is. Yes. Yes, HER sourwolf. And who knows? Maybe SHE could make HIM cum. Y'know -- just to return the favour, of course. Oh, and, because it would be totally fricking awesome to witness!

"Fuck, no, wait..." Derek whimpered, God, damn it. He ACTUALLY fucking whimpered as he began to feel the familiar tightening that spread tingling warmth in the pit of his stomach, straight through to fricking balls. He groaned loudly when she only tightened both her arms and legs around him in response, causing her hips to grind down a little firmer into his own. "Fuck... Stiles," His hands slid up from her asscheeks to still her movements as he grabbed at her waist. "Stop... Stop..."

Stiles smiled to herself as she slowly turned her head to leave a trail of feather-light kisses along the bottom of his jaw. Her skin tingled all over as he breathed against her neck. And for the moment, she did as she was told; as he had asked her. For the moment.

"Stiles," Derek whispered breathlessly as he leaned forward to give her shoulder another gentle bite from his human teeth. "Stop." And yeah, okay, he knew how pathetic he sounded right now. But it TOTALLY wasn't his fault... Well, sort of, anyway. And seriously -- how was it HIM asking HER to stop? Like, what the fuck? How he was still in control, he had a no fricking clue. Or did he?

Stiles' smile only widened secretly to herself as she slowly slipped her hands over his shoulders and down his chest. She make sure to trace over every single well-define muscle on his glorious form as she went, biting her at her bottom lip to keep from grinning as she felt his flesh tighten or twitch at her every touch. She leaned forward, grabbing at his earlobe in between her teeth, gently tugging at it and enjoying the next shiver he gave off. "I don't wanna stop... Not QUITE yet, anyway." She whispered before pushing her hands flat against his chest and shoving him back onto his bed.

Clearly taken aback, Derek glanced up at her, eyes slightly widened. "Stiles," He frowned lightly, trying to keep what little control he had left by now. And it was literally a frigging thread of control left between him pushing her away completely -- for their own good, or at least, the Sheriff's own health and sanity -- and then completely devouring every last mouthwatering fibre her being, right fucking here, and right fucking now. But that would be selfish. And wrong. And God, forbid Derek fricking Hale to ever do the wrong fricking thing. Ugh. He really did hate his life sometimes. SOMETIMES...

Stiles didn't have a fricking clue of what she was doing right now. But all she could think right now, as this beautiful creature lay before her, was; 'Fuck it.' And besides, she thought that he looked pretty much just as wrecked as she felt right now. Which was also fucking beautiful. And before she let herself get too distracted, she shuffled forward a little, purposefully grinding her ass against his hard-on as she slid her hands slowly back up his torso.

"Fuck." Derek hissed quietly, his hips automatically jerking back up into her own.

Stiles smirked before reaching down and placing her lips over his.

"Stiles!?"

Stiles gasped loudly, lifting her head up, her eyes widened in panic at the familiar voice; the voice of her best fucking friend!

Derek let out a low growl of annoyance as he slowly sat up, his eyes narrowing as he mentally cursed himself for not hearing the others sooner. "It's okay. I'll get rid of them." He whispered, shooting her a reassuring look. "But just in case I can't, you should probably go take a shower real quick." He added quickly with a small, but clearly amused grin.

"Stiles! I know you're here! I can smell you!"

Stiles nodded, quickly giving him one last kiss to the lips before slipping off of his lap and then proceeding to scramble for her clothes.

Derek smirked to himself as he shameless watched her nude form for a few more moments. He then hurried to spray himself with a shitload of deodorant before making his way downstairs...

...Scott glared down at the phones on the table before sensing a presence behind him. He quickly hurled around just in time to see Derek slowly stalking down the spiral staircase. "Thanks for answering your phones." He glared over at the older werewolf just as Lydia and Aiden all, but fell out of the elevator in a hurry.

"Yeah." Derek acknowledged simply. "Sorry." He held fought back a smug smirk, trying to sound at least a little sincere. He then arched a brow over at the couple.

"Oh... Yeah..." Aiden mumbled. "Don't mind us." He added with a cheeky grin.

"Yeah." Lydia nodded her agreement. "We were just making sure, that, uh, that Scott got here safely, 'cause, y'know, uh, he's our Alpha, and whatnot..."

Derek merely rolled his eyes before turning back to Scott. "What's so important, then?"

Scott wrinkled his nose slightly. "Wait a minute -- what is that smell? Ugh! Smells like pure fricking chemicals." He planted a hand over his nose. "My God! Is that YOU, Derek? Christ!"

Derek simply rolled his eyes again. Although, he really was trying not to burst out laughing right now.

Aiden suddenly beat him to it, however, and let out a loud howl of laughter. "Oh-ho, my-hy G-hod!" He grinned over at the oldest Alpha, his eyes glinting with pure amusement. "PLEASE confirm that this is ACTUALLY happening right now! Seriously!? ANYBODY!?"

"What?" Lydia frowned, looking utterly confused. "What's he talking about?" She narrowed her eyes at the oldest werewolf -- because this particular redhead never liked to be left out of any loops.

"Yeah," Scott narrowed his eyes, too. "What's he talking about?"

Derek shrugged lazily. "Beats me." He mumbled boredly.

Aiden snorted loudly. "Puh-lease!"

And now Derek was beginning to get a little pissed off with this idiot. Of course, he knew what the douche was talking about. "How about you please shut the fuck up before I make you!?" He snapped in a low, but firm tone. Though, he was clearly NOT asking at all.

"Ohhh..." Lydia breathed calmly, finally realising just what the heck was going on. She then couldn't help smiling slightly to herself as she quickly turned to slap her idiot boyfriend around the back of his head.

"Ow! Hey!" Aiden whined, shooting his girlfriend a pathetic glare. "Baby, why?"

Lydia glared back at him. "Leave it alone." She told him, her voice stern.

Aiden huffed in irritation, but otherwise kept his mouth shut after that.

"Wait -- what?" Scott, however, still looked slightly confused.

And bless him for that, Lydia thought rather fondly. "Scott, just shut up." She chuckled lightly, shaking her head in amazement.

Scott was about to open his mouth to reply to that when he finally spotted Stiles shuffling lazily down the spiral staircase. "And where have YOU b --" He paused, mouth hung open mid-sentence as the penny finally fucking dropped in his mind. It was obvious now. The fresh scent of the shitload of whatever the fuck Derek had doused himself with. And now, the slightly fresh and damp smell of Stiles' skin and the obvious fluffy, and still slightly damp, dark, brown curls flattened to her head.

"Hey, guys. What's going on?" Stiles asked, trying to sound smooth and act casual.

"Hi, Stiles." Lydia greeted back with a small, but permanent grin.

"Uh, hi, Red." Stiles arched a brow back at her, looking slightly confused now.

Scott narrowed his eyes over at the oldest werewolf. "Are you fucking KIDDING me!?" He suddenly roared, causing the others (minus Derek) to jump slightly. "Stiles, what the fuck!?" He snapped, glaring back at her instead now.

Stiles' eyes widened slightly, in both shock and confusion. "What're you talking about, McCall?"

Scott let out a rather sarcastic sounding laugh. "I'm talking about me worry about you, yet a-fucking-gain, while you're up here, letting the first guy who ever even looks your way in between your fucking legs!"

"What!?" Stiles gaped at him, simply speechless. And this time, for all the wrong reasons.

And even Lydia and Aiden gaped in horror at the two best friends.

Derek, however, was in front of Scott in the next moment, a low, threatening growl rippling up his throat. "Talk to her like that again." He threatened in a low tone, his orbs flashed briefly red. "I DARE you."

Scott merely flashed his red orbs back at the other Alpha. "Fuck you!" He barked before pulling back his fist and punching him right in the nose and causing him to go flying a few meters back.

"Whoa! Holy fuck! Dude, NOT cool!" Aiden's eyes widened in shock. And now he was beginning to see the less funny side of all of this. Because shit was about to get real nasty, and he could always tell, it was just something he was always very good at, even for a werewolf.

"Shut up, Aiden!" Scott snarled, his orbs blazing red as he stalked towards the other Alpha.

"Scott! What. The. FUCK!?" Stiles barked angrily, finally snapping out of her stupor.

Scott simply ignored her as he reached down and grabbed the other Alpha by the neck, his claws cutting into flesh and drawing a little blood.

"Scott!" Stiles yelled furiously as she marched over to him.

"Derek!" Lydia snapped. "What're you doing, you idiot!? Fight back!"

"Yeah, Derek," Scott snorted lightly. "Fight back." He taunted, grinning up at him. "I DARE you."

"What!? No!" Stiles hissed, glaring at the redhead. "No. Do NOT fight back. NO fighting. SCOTT, put him down!"

Derek simply smirked back down at him, not even bothering to break free or show any sort of pain at all. "Fuck you." He taunted right back.

Scott snarled angrily, glaring up at him as his grip tightened.

"Derek, shut up, please?" Stiles asked politely. Although, it was clear that she wasn't asking him.

Derek rolled his eyes, but did as he was told. Even if he still couldn't help smirking lightly in amusement.

"And Scott," Stiles glared at him. "What the fuck, dude!? Fuck you. You're not the fucking boss of me. I'm fucking older than you. I've practically wiped your stupid, furry ass for you, your entire fucking life! And, not the mention the fact that you fucked Allison on your first fucking date! Judge, me, will you! Pff! If you must know, I'm still a God, damn virgin, asswipe! So, fuck you! Once again! This time for completely fucking embarrassing me!" And okay, she hadn't planned on going on a ranting rampage. And she certainly hadn't planned the stupid tears welling up to the brims of her eyes right. "Now, put him the fuck down, right fucking now or I swear to my dead mother that I will kick your fucking face off!"


	81. Chapter 81

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Teenagers are SO dramatic, that it's not even a cliché anymore."

From Scotty --  
'I'm REALLY, really, REALLY sorry!  
Please, please, please talk to me! :('

Stiles simply scoffed before closing the text message and shoving her phone back into her pocket. If she were to talk to her so-called best friend while she still felt as pissed off with him as she did right now, well, she would probably end up saying or even doing something she may regret later. And she still loved Scott, of course she did. But that didn't mean she didn't think he still wasn't a complete douche sometimes.

"Was that Scott again?" Allison asked boredly.

"Yup." Stiles replied without even looking up from the television screen.

"How many times is that in the last hour now?" Lydia asked with a scoff.

"I don't know. I'm not really keeping count." Stiles replied. "Or really reading any of them."

"Well, good." Lydia huffed as she leaned back into the couch, sitting in between the other two girls. "Let him stew in his own guilt for a few days, at least. He deserves it."

"Yup. That's the plan." Stiles replied, her voice still calm and collected.

"I'm sorry, Stiles. I don't know what the hell got into him." Allison sighed, looking deeply troubled and upset.

Stiles chuckled lightly, shaking her head at the huntress. "Don't worry about it. I'm used to the little douche throwing his girly tantrums whenever he doesn't get his own way." She scoffed, feeling somewhere between amused and still annoyed. "Seriously, he was WAY worse as a kid."

Allison nodded, though, she still looked pretty guilty, herself.

"Allison," Stiles shot her a reassuring smile. "It's okay. It's not your fault. Seriously."

"No." Lydia agreed. "It's your idiot boyfriend's fault."

Allison smiled faintly. "Have you spoken to Derek since last night?"

"Yeah." Stiles nodded. "He's fine... A little pissed off." She sighed tiredly. "But he's fine."

"Uh-huh. I BET he's fine." Lydia wiggled her eyebrows, while grinning suggestively.

Stiles' cheeks instantly flushed. "Shut up, Red." She narrowed her eyes slightly. "Seriously, it's not funny. It's your stupid boyfriend's fault that Scott freaked out in the first place -- because he couldn't keep his stupid mouth shut!" She snapped.

Lydia glared back at her. "Hey!" She snapped back. "Scott would have figured it out eventually. And anyway, Scott can go fuck himself! He doesn't own you! So don't even try blaming Aiden for this."

"Ladies, please, let's not." Allison shot them both a pleading look.

Stiles merely scoffed loudly in response to the redhead before turning her annoyed gaze back to the television...

...Scott sighed loudly in defeat as he finally tossed his phone onto his bed, where Ethan sat comfortably, arching a brow as he watched his Alpha pace up and down his own bedroom.

Isaac sat, perched on the foot of his Alpha's messy bed, also watching with annoyance. "Scott, sit the fuck down already. You're making giving me motion-sickness, man." He complained.

Ethan chuckled in amusement at that.

"She's still ignoring me." Scott grumbled as he continued his worried paces.

"And I don't blame her." Isaac stated, shooting his Alpha a pointed look.

Scott finally halted his paces and glared over at the curly-haired Beta. "Hey! It's not my fault, okay?"

"It's not your fault for trying to beat the shit outta Derek?" Ethan asked, arching a brow and looking very much seriously.

Scott merely glared back in response.

"Dude, get the fuck over it!" Ethan exclaimed, now glaring back at him. "Derek loves Stiles. And Stiles loves Derek. So just move on, already!"

"Why are you yelling at me?" Scott asked, looking very much like a kicked puppy now.

"Because!" Both Ethan and Isaac yelled back simultaneously, and both sounding slightly aggravated by their slightly dense Alpha.

Isaac let out a frustrated sigh as he flopped back onto the mattress, clearly having given up altogether now.

"Are you jealous? Is THAT what this is?" Ethan asked seriously.

"What? No." Scott wrinkled his nose slightly in disgust. "Stiles is practically my sister. Gross."

Ethan rolled his eyes. "I meant jealous over Stiles finally loving somebody else who isn't you." He deadpanned.

Scott glared as Isaac chuckled in amusement. "No." And he answered honestly.

Ethan sighed tiredly and nodded in acceptance of his lieless heartbeat. "Then what's the problem, really?" He arched an expectant brow as he waited for the real answer now.

"The problem is that everybody Stiles and I ever love, eventually leave us." Scott sighed in defeat. "I know I was way out of line last night, but I couldn't help it. I love Stiles almost as much as I love my mom. She's always been there, ever since I can even remember."

Isaac rolled his eyes. "Then, don't you think you should tell HER that, numbnuts? Y'know, instead of beating the crap outta of her boyfriend first."

And this time, both Scott and Ethan glared at Isaac. And Ethan was just glad that it wasn't HIM ruining a "moment" -- for once...

...Peter arched a brow over at his nephew, looking somewhere between shocked and amused. "Whoa! What happened to YOU?" He asked as he noticed the healing claw marks around the younger werewolf's neck. Claw marks he recognised as an Alpha's. Not to mention the rather angry scent he was getting right now. And it didn't belong to anyone who was in the loft right now. And immediately, he recognised that emotional stink as Scott's scent, then Stiles, a lot of Stiles, in fact. And then he could also smell the hint of Lydia's strawberry shampoo lingering in the stale air. And possibly one of the twins refreshed scent, probably Aiden, if the redhead had been here.

"Scott." Derek replied simply as he slumped slowly back into the couch, glancing up at the ceiling in utter boredom.

"Yeah. I heard a little something about that." Peter nodded as he sauntered over and plopped down beside his nephew. "Well, I got the gist, anyway. Cora told me, Isaac told Cora, Allison told Isaac, Lydia told Allison and of course, everyone else." He chuckled lightly in fondness of the redhead. Well, maybe a LITTLE bit more than just fondness...

Derek simply continued to stare up at the ceiling, only half paying attention as his thoughts slowly wondered back to --

"-- is Stiles?"

Derek slowly pulled his head back up. "What?" He asked, looking slightly lost now.

Peter smirked knowingly at the younger wolf's rather distracted expression, but decided not to call him on it. Well, not just yet, anyway. "How is Stiles?" He simply repeated the question. For now, anyway.

"Pissed off." Derek grunted. "Upset." He added with a glare.

Peter nodded. "And I don't blame her." He shrugged, as if it were that simple.

Derek nodded. "And what I ruined their friendship?" He asked, looking slightly miserable now.

Peter sighed tiredly. "Look, everybody knows that Scott isn't the sharpest tool in the box... And that's putting it nicely, to say the VERY least. BUT as annoying as they BOTH are -- he and Stiles would willing die for one another. So, whatever their problem is now, I'm sure they'll get over real soon. Just like they always do." He scoffed, rolling his eyes at that. "Teenagers are SO dramatic, that it's not even a cliché anymore. Seriously. I don't know how you put up with it. I don't know how I put up with it."


	82. Chapter 82

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You're a disgusting, little human, y'know that?"

Standing on the edge of her bed, Stiles took a deep breath to clear her mind as best she could. "Okay, here I go again." She mumbled to herself before finally leaping off into mid-air... And falling flat on her face, again. "Ow! Damn it!" She grumbled, letting out a huff of frustration as she slowly hauled herself back up onto her feet.

"Stiles... What the hell are you doing?"

Stiles immediately squealed loudly and jumped in shock at the sound of that all too familiar and pretty voice. "Derek! God! STOP doing that or one day, I'm ACTUALLY gonna have a heart attack!" She scalded the werewolf as he stood in her bedroom doorway, wearing an arched brow and a small smirk.

"Sorry." Derek mumbled as his smirk widened slightly.

Stiles scoffed. Though, she was unable to hold onto her own smirk. "No, you're not."

Derek simply held his smirk as he repeated his question. "So... WHAT are you doing?" He asked, now back to looking curious. Although, still amused, of course. She wasn't the most graceful being he had ever met. But that was okay. In fact, it was incredibly entertaining. Not to mention (God, help him) a-fricking-dorable. Ugh.

Stiles let out an annoyed, little huff as she plopped down on the end of her bed. "I'm trying to fly." She answered simply.

Derek's brow rose further in response.

"Yeah. I know. It sounds crazy. But crazier shit HAS happened." Stiles rolled her eyes, smiling slightly in amusement at the rather confused (adorable) expression he was pulling.

"That's very true." Derek nodded in agreement as he finally walked into the room. He shut the door quietly behind him and then stalked slowly over to the bed to sit beside her. "Now, explain. Please?" He shot her a look of intrigue.

"Well," Stiles began. "This morning, when I woke up, I was floating in mid-air. Literally. And although I was only, like, a foot or so above my bed, I kinda freaked out -- which probably shook whatever the heck was happening off, 'cause I kinda fell back onto the bed... And STILL somehow managed to end up rolling straight over the edge and onto the fricking floor."

Derek smiled slightly in amusement as he imagined the entire scenario. And he was also kind of amazed. Seriously, was there anything she couldn't do anymore? She actually made him feel like a little kid again with all this "magic stuff" -- as Stiles, herself had put it -- happening.

"It's not funny." Stiles scowled pathetically over at him, while feeling her lips already tugging into a small smile.

Derek chuckled lightly. "Actually... It kind of is."

"You're so mean." Stiles glared half-hearted up at him as she playfully barged her shoulder into his upper arm.

Derek simply shot her a smug smirk in return. "So, uh," He frowned, feeling slightly awkward. But he wanted to know. He needed to know. "Have you spoken to Scott since Sunday?" He asked, eyeing her reaction carefully as he did.

"Nope." Stiles scoffed lightly. "Actually, I've done a pretty good job of avoiding him these last three days. He tried to talk to me at school a few times, but I just walked away... Anyway," She shot him a slightly concerned look. "Are YOU okay?"

"I'm fine. Don't worry about me." Derek's frown only deepened. "Stiles, I don't ever wanna come between you two. He's your family."

Stiles nodded. "I know that. I'm only gonna let him rot 'til the weekend. And then, I'll give him a call, yell briefly and then ask him to come over, so that I can take my revenge out on him by completely destroying him a thousand times over on Mortal Combat." She explained simply, though, her tone was soft and her expression reassuring. Because no matter how cold-hearted people may have thought Derek Hale was, they didn't know the real reasons behind that. And Stiles did. She understood how much family meant to him, because she knew how fricking much it meant to her, too. And how the hell could she ever forget that? No. She couldn't. And she didn't ever want to, either.

Derek nodded, seeming to accept her answer. And he did, he actually felt a little relieved, too. "Okay. Good. I guess MORE than he deserves that." He smiled slightly, some of the amusement returning to his own expression.

Again, Stiles scoffed. "Oh, HELL, yes! He deserves a shit-lot more than THAT." She glared slightly to herself. "That furry, little asshole practically called me a whore. He's got A LOT of fricking grovelling to do before I ever call him my bro again." She sassed, folding her arms defiantly across her chest.

"Yeah..." Derek nodded in agreement there. "That part, I'm NOT so forgiving over." He mumbled, mostly to himself, now glaring at the floor beneath his black sneakers.

"Yeah, well, he's lucky that I didn't shove one of my dad's guns up his stupid ass before pulling the God, damn trigger... I wonder if werewolves can heal from a blown out ass hole." Stiles grumbled, also glaring down at the floor beneath her socked feet.

Derek chuckled lightly as he glanced over at her. "You're a disgusting, little human, y'know that?" He stated. Though, he looked oddly proud of that fact.

"Yeah." Stiles shrugged casually. "But I'm cute. So I get by." She chirped with a cheeky grin...

...Allison inhaled sharply, her pulse quickening slightly as she read the text on her phone from the unknown number.

It simply read: 'Soon.'

Allison didn't have to guess. She already knew that it was her so-called grandfather. She quickly closed the text, shoving her phone back into her pocket and trying to calm her heartbeat down. After a few more minutes, she finally managed to calm herself down before finally exiting her bathroom. She padded quickly down the hallway and back into her bedroom, closing her door quietly behind her.

"Hey, you okay?" Scott asked, eyeing her with some concern, from his spot on her bed.

Allison offered a small smile and nodded as she padded over across the room and slipping back under the covers beside him.

"You sure?" Scott mumbled as he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her into his side.

"Yeah." Allison mumbled softly back. "Just tired."

Scott simply nodded. Though, he didn't quite believe her. But he could let it go, for her own sake. For now, anyway. "Allison?"

"Yeah?"

Scott sighed sadly as he nested his head under her chin. "Do you think there are some things that are unforgivable?" He asked quietly and timidly.

Allison sighed softly before responding. "Is this about Stiles?" Not that she even needed to ask.

Scott silently gulped down the aching lump already forming in his throat. "She hates me." He whispered miserably.

"Scott," Allison whispered softly, a hand coming up to comb gentle fingers through his dark, chocolate-brown wisps of hair. "You KNOW that's not true. I don't think that's even possible." And while she was only trying to make him feel better, she also knew how true her words were.

"No." Scott shook his head as he lifted it to look down at her, his eyes filled to the brim with unshed tears. "You weren't there... You didn't see the look on her face... I practically called her a whore."

"It doesn't matter." Allison stated. "Sure, Stiles is MORE than pissed off with you right now," She nodded. "But she does NOT hate, Scott. I know she doesn't." She smiled slightly. "No one could ever hate you. Not really."

"Then, what do I do?" Scott asked, glancing helpless down at her for guidance.

Allison sat up slowly, placing a short, but sweet kiss to his lips. "Just give her some space. Trust me, okay?"

Scott sighed in defeat, but nodded, limply. "Okay..."

...Cora howled loudly in pain as the electric volts spread through her entire body. "FUCK!" She roared angrily when the taser was pulled away from her.

Gerard chuckled quietly, his jet black orbs somehow still dancing with the cruel amusement that they were used to. "Feel like talking, yet, Lassie?" He asked, his voice lighthearted and slightly taunting.

"Fuck you!" Cora ground out, her voice hoarse. Though, her eyes burning their bright golden colour and her canines fully lengthened. There was only so much pain a girl could take. Even a weregirl, for that matter.

Gerard wrinkled his nose in disgust. "As if, you disgusting piece of unnatural filth." He snarled before shoving taser into the center of her back.

"ARGH! YOU FUCKER!" Cora roared out as he pulled back once again, her wrists straining against her heavy chains and her arms aching from constantly tensing and jerking and twitching.

"Now, where were we?" Gerard quickly composed himself as he slowly sauntered around her, now standing in front of the she beast. "Ah, yes." He shot her a teasing grin. "This little pack of yours -- how many of your are there now?" He asked, looking mildly interested.

Cora scoffed loudly. "Just get it over with and kill me, already. 'Cause I'm not telling YOU shit!"

Gerard stared blankly back up at her for a few moments before nodding in acceptance. "Fine. That's fine." He stated calmly, a little TOO calmly.

Cora watched him closely, her brow set in a defiant glare.

"I guess I'll just have to MAKE you talk." Gerard stated, smirking smugly as he tossed the taser aside.

Cora scoffed loudly again, ignoring all of her fears and focussing solely on her fury. "Bring it! I'm not afraid your wrinkly, old asshole!" She snapped, her bright orbs darkening considerably.

Gerard's jaw tightened, his arm suddenly darting out, his clawed-hand wrapped firmly around the young Beta's throat. He smirked a little in satisfaction as she choked loudly and spluttered desperately in his ever-tightening grip. "You SHOULD be afraid of me, my dear. You should be VERY afraid, indeed."

"W-what a-are you!?" Cora choked out, her eyes blazing defiantly back into his own pools of darkness. And she could see, nothing. Absolutely nothing in those disturbing eyes of his.

"What am I?" Gerard chuckled in utter amusement. "I'm the fucking the Devil, bitch."


	83. Chapter 83

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "How about I demonstrate on YOU?"

Stiles sighed tiredly as she stalked lazily across the busy high school parking lot. And as she hopped into her Jeep, she felt her phone begin to vibrate continuously in her pocket. She threw her rucksack onto the passenger's seat and then dug into her pocket, rolling her eyes at the caller's I.D. before answering. After all, it was Friday. Pff. Lucky for HIM.

"Stiles?"

Stiles rolled her eyes again. "No. It's God." She stated, her tone dripping with sarcasm. "Dude, YOU rang ME, here, remember?"

"I... I wasn't sure if you'd answer." Scott replied, sounding very quiet and wary, indeed.

"What'd you want, Scott?" Stiles asked boredly. Of course, she was still pissed off with him. But she still couldn't find it in her heart to be cold and harsh towards him. 'Ugh. Why do I ALWAYS gotta be the good guy? It's not fair anymore!'

"Stiles, God," Scott hissed, sounding rather stressed. "I'm SO fucking sorry. I didn't mean it. I didn't mean any of it. I swear!"

Stiles sighed quietly in defeat as she nodded to herself. "Yeah... Yeah, I know." She mumbled quietly. And she didn't need any werewolf abilities with Scott, because she knew him better than anyone. Well, accept for his own mother, of course. And it was vice versa with Stiles and her father.

"I was just being a dick --"

Stiles snorted loudly and sounding very unladylike. "Yeah." She agreed boldly. "Yeah, you were."

Scott huffed lightly. "I know... God... I'm sorry..."

Stiles rolled her eyes again. "What the hell, anyway, dude? Why'd you freak out like that?"

"Ugh! It wasn't MY fault... Okay, it was totally my fault. But Lydia and the others were tormenting me over you being with Derek. And I know it's none of my business, but I still care about you, Stiles. I just snapped when I thought about him touching you... Or anyone touching you, for that matter. It's nothing personal against Derek... Mostly, anyway. 'Cause let's face it; he's STILL a douche sometimes. But anyway, yeah, not the point here. So... Yeah, anyway..."

"Wow... I, uh... Wow..." Stiles' eyes were slightly widened as his words slowly sunk into her brain.

"Yeah..." Scott mumbled, sounding rather miserable now. "Again; I'm REALLY, really, REALLY frigging sorry..."

"Well... You're STILL a dick." Stiles chirped, now smiling slightly. "But I GUESS I can forgive you... Just this once, though. 'Cause if you ever pull that kinda shit on me again, I may have to kill you... Or let Derek kill you. Which, you kinda deserved after what you did to him." She stated in a deadly serious tone. And even if she was still smiling to herself, she was still totally deadly serious. Kind of...

Scott chuckled lightly. "Yeah, okay. I guess I can live with that."

Stiles scoffed. "You bet your furry fucking ass, you can."

Scott chuckled again. "So... We're okay now?" He asked, sounding somewhere between timid and hopeful.

Stiles rolled her eyes once again, though, she was still smiling to herself. "Yeah, we're okay, dude."

Scott let out a small, but relieved sounding sigh. "And... It's all good?"

Stiles grinned. "Yeah, it's all good, my brotha. All the time."

"All the time, bro." Scott replied and she could tell he was grinning now, too.

Stiles smirked to herself as she dug her keys out of her pocket with her free hand. "Now, hop that furry ass of yours back onto your little bicycle and meet me at my house in ten, bitch." She chirped with a laugh before finally hanging up altogether.

"Stiles --"

Stiles instantly jumped in her seat, squealing in fright at the top of her lungs in fright.

"Ow..." Cora winced at the shrill sound as she slowly hauled herself up into a sitting position.

"What the fuck!?" Stiles roared, turning around in her seat to find the youngest Hale sprawled out across the back seat. "Cora!?" Her eyes were still widened slightly in shock, her pulse ringing in her ears. "God, damn it! What is it with you and Derek, huh!? I almost shit my panties in terror over here!" She glared as the she wolf shot her a faint, but still amused -- and VERY Derek-like -- smirk. "Have you been back there this entire time?" She asked with narrowed eyes.

Cora's smirk widened. "Yeah. Thought I'd let you finish your conversation with Scott first." She answered simply.

"Wonderful." Stiles muttered to herself before finally registering just how weak and pale the werewolf looked. "Hey, are you okay? What happened?" She asked, eyeing the older girl with concern now.

"Gerard happened." Cora stated, her bright orbs darkening considerably.

Stiles' heart skipped a beat, her eyes widening at the mere name. "W-what?" She stammered, her pulse now quickening slightly.

"Scott didn't tell you?" Cora frowned, looking surprised and then pissed off.

"N-no." Stiles cleared her throat quietly as she tried to keep composed. "Uh, I've been ignoring him all week, 'cause we kinda had a fight last weekend." She explained.

"Oh, yeah." Cora nodded. "Derek told me..." She explained rather warily.

Stiles shot her a small, but reassuring smile. "It's cool. You're his sister. He tells you stuff. I get it."

Cora simply nodded, offering a small, but grateful smile back.

"So, what happened with Gerard?" Stiles asked, forcing herself to somehow remain calm. And okay, MAYBE she hadn't told Scott and the others EVERY single little detail of her "lovely" stay down in the Argent's basement with Gerard himself. But she hadn't needed to. And now, she was actually kind of regretting her decision. Although, how could she say anything now? After keeping it to herself for so long?

Cora eyed her carefully, sensing something amiss, but kept it to herself, for now. "I walked out of Derek's apartment. Someone hit me on the head from behind. I blacked out and woke up in some old, abandoned warehouse, dangling from the ceiling. And then I spent the next 48 hours being tortured. It was unpleasant." She explained, her tone serious, though completely calm.

Stiles arched a brow. "It sometimes disturbs me how much you and Derek are alike... Seriously."

Cora smirked. "I'm WAY cuter than Derek." She stated boldly, and again, quite seriously.

Stiles' brow rose even further. "Well, that's as maybe... Derek MAY be SLIGHTLY cuter... 'Cause, y'know, sometimes, when he's in a good enough mood, he even gives me a cookie." She joked with a teasing grin.

Cora's smirk widened slowly. "I'll make sure to tell him you said that. Word for word, that is."

Stiles glared at her. "Please don't."

"Too late." Cora shrugged casually.

"I hate you." Stiles' glare darkened slightly.

Cora rolled her eyes, still smirking. "No, you don't. No one can hate ME. I'm WAY too good-looking."

Stiles scoffed loudly. "And now, you just sound like your 'dear', old uncle Peter." She chirped, wearing another teasing grin.

To which, this time, Cora glared back in response...

...Derek growled out in frustration and anger, his orbs blazing red, his entire body tense with rage.

"NOW what?" Peter asked boredly as he glanced up from one of Lydia's Vogue magazines that he was reading.

"That was Stiles." Derek grunted, referring to the person he had just spoken to over the phone.

"And?" Peter arched a brow. "What? No sex tonight?" He asked, unable to help smirking widely in amusement.

Derek growled lowly, shooting him a threatening glare. "Do NOT go there. Ever."

Peter let the magazine slip through his fingers and back onto his lap as he held his hands up in surrender. "Not going there. Just saying."

"Well, don't. Unless you want me to slit your throat. Again." Derek growled, still glaring over at his stupid, asshole uncle.

Peter merely rolled his eyes. "Well, what did Stiles have to say?" He asked curiously.

"She said that she found Cora laying half conscious in the backseat of her Jeep this afternoon, when she got outta school." Derek explained.

"What happened?" Peter asked, tossing the magazine aside and rising from the couch. "Is Cora okay?" He asked, now looking more concerned than anything.

Derek sighed tiredly and nodded. "Stiles said she's fine. She's just a little bruised and beat up."

Peter let out a low growl. "Who the fuck --"

"Gerard." Derek cut him off, his jaw tightening and his hands curling into even tighter fists at his sides.

"So," Peter sneered. "He's back."

"Yeah." Derek glared. "He's back."

"So?" Peter asked. "What'd we do?"

Derek scoffed, shooting him a "duh" look. "We kill him."

Peter rolled his eyes. "No shit, honey. I meant; HOW?" He retorted, shooting his slightly dim, but dear, little nephew a "duh" look right back.

Derek glared back at him. "How about I demonstrate on YOU?"


	84. Chapter 84

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "He won't stop this time. Not until we're all dead."

After Stiles had parked up her Jeep, she then proceeded to help the still-healing she wolf out of the vehicle, across the street and into the apartment building. With an arm of the wolf's thrown around the back of her shoulders, Stiles held onto her wrist as it dangled loosely beside her, her other arm wrapped tightly around the back of the wolf's waist. The girls slowly entered the elevator, Stiles carefully leaning the she wolf against the back wall before pressing the button.

"Thank you, Stiles." Cora huffed out, panting slightly in her still slightly weakened state. And even if she was an even bigger cold-hearted ass than her big brother, she still meant it. She was grateful to this human. And for more than just helping her out tonight or saving her life in the past.

Stiles shot her a small smile. "No problem. Like I'd leave you. You're WAY too good-looking -- remember?" She added with a grin.

Cora shook her head, smiling faintly. "Whatever... But I'm not thanking you just for all the shit you've done for me. I meant for what you've done for my brother."

Stiles shot her a slightly confused look. "What did I do?"

Cora chuckled, looking tired, though, still amused. "You gave him back to me." She smiled brightly. "You remember how I told you that he was different now than the way he was when I knew him as a kid?"

"You mean before the fire?" Stiles asked quietly. Though, she didn't really need an answer for that.

Cora nodded. "Well, I meant that, too. He WAS different. He wasn't himself. He was constantly angry and that's not who Derek is. Before all of that happened, he was just a normal kid."

"Normal for a werewolf, yeah." Stiles smiled when the she wolf glared at her, unable to help herself, just as the elevator stopped moving.

Cora huffed. "Whatever. I was just thanking you for giving him hope again." She grumbled, even if she meant every word.

Stiles smiled brightly. "Ugh. Since when do YOU do mushy talks?"

To which, Cora glared at her once again. 'SHE'S my brother's other half... And I'm stuck with her, forever... Or at least until I die... Great...' And she TOTALLY did NOT want to smile right now. Ugh!

Stiles chuckled lightly, clearly amused by her own efforts and feeling just fine about that. Well, like her mother always used to say, "If you can't make yourself laugh, then don't try to make others laugh." Stiles quickly hauled the metal partition along before returning to the she wolf's side as helping her out of the elevator.

"Ow!" Cora hissed as their feet collided briefly. "Hey! Careful, Stilinski!"

"Ugh! It's not my fault! YOU'RE the one who's supposed to have supernatural grace!" Stiles snapped back as the two of them hobbled into the loft. "And would it kill you to lose a couple of pounds!? Ugh!"

Cora scoffed, glaring up at the human once she had not-so carefully disposed of her onto one of the couches. "Fuck off! It's ALL muscle."

Stiles scoffed even louder, shooting her a "what-the-fuck-ever!" look.

"Oh, Derek! The children are home!" Peter chirped loudly in amusement, suddenly announcing his presence from the top of the spiral staircase.

And then in the next moment, Derek appeared from behind, shoving passed his uncle before descending the stairs.

"Yo, bro." Cora muttered sarcastically as he approached.

Derek glanced briefly to Stiles before glancing down at his baby sister. "What'd he do to you?" He asked immediately, his voice as calm as his expression, but also low and firm.

Cora shrugged lazily before replying. "Shallow cuts to make sure I didn't pass out and bleed out, tasers, fire, his fists..." She rolled her eyes. "Y'know, the usual."

Derek's jaw tightened, his orbs slowly turning entirely black.

"I'll heal. I just need a fat bacon sandwich and a long-ass nap." Cora stated as she slowly hauled herself up from the couch.

Stiles quickly reached out to grab her arm when she swayed slightly on her feet, Derek doing the same, the other side of the she wolf.

"I'm okay." Cora shot them both a small, but reassuring smile before gently shrugging them both off. "Just need a nice, hot bath."

"I'm kinda starving, too, though. How about I grab us something?" Stiles asked, rubbing her empty stomach.

Derek smiled slightly in amusement.

"KFC. Get a bucket. Actually, get two." Cora requested without missing a beat.

Stiles then narrowed her eyes slightly at the she wolf, looking rather annoyed now. "Ugh. You were just waiting for me to ask -- weren't you?" And that wasn't a question, either. It was fricking obvious. Seriously, this werewolf was more sly than a certain red-headed banshee. 'Derek was right. Ugh. Damn werewolves.'

Cora smiled smugly. "Well, you're like a childrens book with arms -- you're THAT easy to read."

"I will kill you until you're dead." Stiles muttered, her eyes narrowing further.

Cora snorted. "What?"

Derek's smile widened. "Okay. Goodbye, Cora. Go take a bath. You smell. So bad."

Cora glared at him. "And you suck. So hard." She muttered before shuffling off towards the stairs.

"Uh," Peter piped up as he descended the stairs. "Could I get a --"

"No." Stiles cut him off, shaking her head.

Peter glared at her. "I'M hungry, too, y'know?"

"Yes." Stiles nodded, shooting him a deadly serious look. "And YOU feed on the kinda misery and lies that make the baby Jesus cry. So, go find some poor soul to suck on instead."

Peter shot her a look somewhere between slightly taken aback and actually rather amused. "I like this one, Derek." He smirked when she glared at him. "Try not let her die, TOO..."

Derek glared over at him, letting out a low, warning growl. And he wasn't really sure of what happened next -- all he saw was Peter suddenly go flying back and landing hard into the bottom of the staircase. Derek's eyes widened over at his uncle, until he glanced over at Stiles, seeing her own eyes; jet black, to the brim.

"What the hell was THAT!?" Peter snarled, slowly hauling himself to his feet and cracking his back loudly.

"Stay down." Stiles hissed, her eyes narrowed in on the older werewolf.

Peter snarled in annoyance when he felt his legs buckle before crashing back down onto the floor.

"Stiles," Derek gently grabbed at her wrist. And yes, obviously he would have loved to watch her kick his uncle's ass right now, but he didn't want her regretting anything... Like accidentally becoming a killer.

Stiles seemed to relax instantly at the small contact, causing all the anger within her to diminish. Slowly, her narrowed orbs drifted away from the Peter and down to where Derek's hand was wrapped around her wrist.

"Stiles," Derek reached out with his other arm, curling his fingers under her chin to make her look at him.

Stiles glanced up at him, the blackness quickly shimmering away to reveal her whiskey browns finally. She jumped back slightly, her eyes blinking rapidly as she waited for her blurred vision to readjust.

"Are you okay?" Derek asked, eyeing her with some concern.

Peter glared half-heartedly now as he watched the couple with keen interest. Stiles, in particular.

Stiles merely nodded, then glancing back to the oldest werewolf. "Sorry." She mumbled, wearing a troubled frown.

Peter scoffed as he finally hauled himself back up onto his feet. "Don't worry about it." He replied, his tone slightly bitter. "I'm used to being treated like an Omega bitch by now."

Derek snarled over at him, his eyes narrowed into angry slits. "Well, it's not like you don't deserve it!" He snapped, his tone low and firm.

Peter simply rolled his eyes.

"I should go." Stiles muttered, using their distraction to slip out of Derek's grasp. She shuffled quickly along, back towards the elevator, but was blocked from getting too far by a certain sourwolf.

"You don't have to." Derek frowned deeply as he stared down at her.

Stiles nodded limply. "I know." She shot him the best smile she could muster up in that moment. "But I forgot; I invited Scott over. He's probably gonna call me any minute now, wondering where I am. So, I should go. I'll call you later, though." She explained quickly, shooting him one last, small smile before gently brushing passed him.

Derek wasn't quite convinced as he watched her shuffle into the elevator without so much a second glance back. But for now, he decided to give her a little space. And then, when he could finally hear the elevator moving back down, he turned around and shot his so-called asshole of an uncle the deadliest, most annoyed look that he could muster up.

"What? What'd I do?" Peter asked, both sounding and looking far too innocent.

Derek's gaze only darkened. "Out. NOW."

"Derek? What's going on?" Cora asked, suddenly appearing at the top of the staircase with a white towel wrapped around her damp body.

"Oh, he's just being dramatic. As usual." Peter explained with a roll of his eyes.

Cora noticed her brother's jaw tightening. "Uncle Peter," She narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the older wolf. "What did you do NOW?"

Peter scoffed loudly, looking completely and utterly offended. "I didn't do anything!" He practically squealed -- oh, how very manly of him. "Well, nothing out of the ordinary, anyway." He added with a small smirk.

Derek let out another low snarl. "I will END you. AGAIN."

Cora rolled her eyes at the two males; her stupid family. "Whatever. How long is Stiles gonna be? I'm fucking famished."

Derek scoffed bitterly. "She won't be back tonight."

"What!?" Cora hissed, glaring back at her uncle. "WHAT did you say to her!? WHY am I not getting my buckets of chicken tonight, because of YOU!?"

Peter gulped quietly, suddenly looking a little afraid or the crazed look in his baby niece's eyes. "Now, Cora," He held up his hands slowly in defence. "It's not my fault she can't take a joke."

Cora stormed down the spiral staircase and straight up to him with her eyes narrowed and darkened considerably. "Do you have ANY idea of what I've been through in the last 48 hours!?" She hissed, glaring up at him with her hands placed on her hips.

"Yeah..." Peter muttered, his eyes widened slightly as he glanced back down at her.

"Shut up!" Cora snapped.

Peter flinched.

And of course, Derek smirked slightly. 'Serves the asshole right.'

"What am I supposed to eat NOW, huh!?" Cora asked, arching an expectant brow up at him.

"Uh..." Peter really didn't know how to respond without only pissing her off even further.

"Looks like YOU'RE going out to fetch me my chicken." Cora snarked with a smug smirk as she folded her arms over her chest. "Well?" She shot him another expectant look when he didn't move. "Off you pop."

Peter sighed loudly in defeat before finally doing as he was told. "Oh, money?" He asked smugly.

Cora scoffed. "I'm outta dimes. You're paying." She stated smugly right back, smirking when his expression dropped. "Get another bucket for Derek, as well."

"And what about ME?" Peter asked, scowling over at her.

Cora smiled sweetly. "Get whatever you want. Y'know, if you've got any money left."

Derek's smirk widened. 'I love my sister. She's awesome. Seriously.'

Peter glared back at the both of them before huffing loudly and sauntering lazily towards the elevator...

...Scott let out a sigh of relief as he watched his best friend's Jeep finally pull up into her driveway. "I was just about to call you." He stated as she hopped out of the vehicle and locked it. "Where were you?" He asked curiously.

"I had to give Cora a ride home." Stiles explained. "She just showed up in my Jeep after school. And she was beaten up pretty badly."

Scott's eyes widened slightly. "Fuck." He hissed. "Gerard. Stiles," He shot her an apologetic look. "I'm sorry. I forgot --"

"It's okay." Stiles nodded in reassurance. "I HAVE been ignoring you all week." She pointed out, forcing on her usual bright smile -- even if she knew he could see right through it.

"Still," Scott didn't look convinced. In fact, he looked almost as troubled as Stiles felt right now. "I should have told one of the others to let you."

"Seriously, dude, it's okay. It doesn't matter now." Stiles waved a dismissive hand.

Scott nodded limply. "Well, is Cora okay, at least?" He asked hopefully.

Stiles nodded. "She'll heal."

Scott nodded back again, looking a little brighter and feeling a little better, too, at least.

Stiles sighed tiredly. "She said that he let her go as another message for you and Derek."

Scott's eyes narrowed slightly. "Oh, he wants to play the family card again, huh?" He snarled angrily, his hands curled into tight, shaking fists at his sides.

"He's got nothing left to lose and he was basically insane and evil before he lost his entire family anyway." Stiles pointed out. "He won't stop this time. Not until we're all dead."

Scott scoffed loudly, his anger only boiling over even more. "Yeah, well, I'm NOT gonna let that happen. Ever."

Stiles loved her best friend and she had faith in him. Of course she did. But she was still afraid. And she couldn't help that. "And how are you gonna do that?" She asked, arching an expectant brow up at him.

Scott grinned broadly, looking rather confidant. "By protecting you; by being your Alpha."


	85. Chapter 85

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I don't date humans. OR vaginas. Of ANY kind."

This Monday morning was slightly different for Stiles. And that was simply, because as soon as woke up and opened her eyes, her gaze was met with a pair of familiar bright reds gazing mischievously back down at her. And of course, her human instincts caused Stiles to squeal loudly in fright. And of course, her lack of grace (seriously, even for a fricking human) caused her to jump in surprise, which caused her to roll out of bed and land on the carpet with a soft thud.

Cooter stared down at her, his brow arched in amusement now. "Um, good morning. Whatchya doing down THERE?"

"God, damn it, Cooter! NOT cool!" Stiles snapped, glaring back up at him from her tangled limbs. "I've got enough werewolves doing that creepy Ninja shit to me and it's NOT good for my health!"

"Sorry." Cooter shrugged, not looking very sorry at all. "You looked peaceful. I didn't wanna wake you."

Stiles continued to glare up at him, making no attempt to move yet. "Ugh. How long have you been standing there, you big creep!?" She asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

Cooter shrugged again. "Meh. Five, maybe ten minutes."

Stiles' eyes only narrowed further. "Creepy, dude. That's SERIOUSLY creepy." She shot him a stern and rather pointed look.

Cooter rolled his eyes, still smirking in amusement. "Please. Don't flatter yourself. I don't date humans. OR vaginas. Of ANY kind."

Stiles stared blankly up at him before grinning from ear to ear. "I KNEW it!" She cheered. "My gaydar is SO on top form!"

Cooter merely rolled his eyes again, though, he was still smirking.

Stiles finally hauled herself back up onto her bare feet. "So... Are you like... Seeing anybody currently?" She asked warily, not wanting to offend him, but still, with genuine interest.

"Why?" Cooter scoffed, his smirk widening. "You looking to hook me up with someone?" He asked, arching a brow.

And really, Stiles couldn't tell if he was just humouring her or not, but she replied anyway. "What?" She looked surprised by that. "Um, no... You're the only demon I know, really... Sorry..." She frowned slightly, feeling a little guilty from even bringing it up now.

Cooter chuckled lightly, waving a hand of dismissal. "Ah, I'm just messing with you, bub."

To which, Stiles glared at him again. 'Ugh. And I knew that, too. Deep down... Jackass.'

"So, how's it going?" Cooter asked light-heartedly.

Stiles arched a brow. "'How's it going?'"

"Yeah. What?" Cooter shot her a slightly confused look.

"Are all demons like you?" Stiles asked, wearing a small, but teasing smile.

"What -- y'mean gorgeous and charismatic? Hell, no." Cooter wrinkled his nose. "They're all beasts. Well, most of 'em, anyway."

Stiles arched a brow, her smile growing slowly. "Well, thanks for the heads-up on THAT." She stated, trying not to sound too sarcastic. And if was difficult for her, okay? 'Totally dad's fault I'm the way I am. And even HE knows that.'

Cooter merely rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Anyway, I was referring to how you're getting along with your new abilities." He stated snootily.

"Oh." Stiles nodded. "Well, in that case; it's been going fricking sucky."

Cooter frowned, now looking rather concerned. "You talking about what happened with Peter?" He scoffed loudly. "That wereass deserved it."

"It's not about Peter." Stiles stated, wearing a rather troubled look. "It's about me, losing control."

"I get it." Cooter nodded, seeming to understand exactly what she was thinking. "You're afraid you might hurt the others."

Stiles nodded limply. "What if it had been Scott? Or Derek? ...Or my dad?" She glanced up at him through helpless and frightened orbs.

"Hey, it's okay to be afraid. Fear and pain are both human qualities and they can be ones that you can use to your full advantage. They give you power AND control." Cooter explained, shooting her a reassuring look. "All you have to do is let go and embrace it."

"How?" Stiles asked, staring miserably and quite pathetically up at the large demon standing in her bedroom. Yeah, 'cause shit like that happens at random in her life now. So, just "meh", right?

"Take a pointer from your wolves --" Cooter grinned cheekily. "Find an anchor."

Stiles arched a brow again, looking a little confused again. "What -- like -- a person or --"

"It could be a person." Cooter nodded. "It could just be a memory your particularly fond of, or just an overwhelming emotion you once felt, or even just a material object that you treasure."

Stiles nodded. "Find an anchor. Yeah, I think I can do that."

Cooter smirked smugly. "You thinking about your boy; Derek right now?"

Stiles mentally cursed herself as she felt her cheeks instantly flush at the mere mention of sourwolf's stupid (sexy -- ugh!) name. "No, actually." She retorted snootily.

"Uh-huh. Sure." Cooter nodded, his smirk only widening.

Stiles rolled her eyes, shooting him a playful glare. "I was thinking about my mom."

"Ah." Cooter nodded, his smirk faltering slightly. And now, he just felt like an asshole. "Sorry."

Stiles shook her head and smiled reassuringly up at him. "It's fine, dude." And really, it wasn't fine. Nothing about her mother not being here with her right now, was fine. And it never would be, either. And it wasn't that she had gotten over that fact, more, gotten used to, like a dull, throbbing tooth ache left to rot inside of her.

"Oh, quick note before I scoot;" Cooter piped up, clapping his large, clawed hands together in excitement. "The whole levitation thing --"

"Yeah, I was wondering about THAT." Stiles countered with a rather sarcastic smile.

"Yeah. Pretty nifty, huh?" Cooter chirped, grinning like an excited toddler.

Stiles glared up at him. "'Nifty'? I almost concussed myself on the way outta bed!" She snapped.

Cooter snorted. "Yeah... That WAS pretty funny."

"Ugh! What the hell!? What're you, like, watching me 24/7!?" Stiles exclaimed, looking utterly appalled now.

Cooter wrinkled his nose. "Again; don't flatter yourself. I just check in every few days, like a good, little errand boy." He added that last part with a cheesy grin.

Stiles merely rolled her eyes. But she WAS rather relieved to hear that. She would have actually died of embarrassment otherwise. Seriously. One word: Derek.

"Anyway, the levitation thing, it isn't really a thing. I mean, you can't fly or anything. But you can float, a little." Cooter explained. "Don't ask me why. I don't know. But everything has its reasons." He concluded with a shrug.

Stiles nodded. "Okay..." And really, what else was she supposed to say?

"Anyway, I gotta bounce. You're not the only charge I have." Cooter grinned. "Remember to eat some breakfast. And don't be late for school."

"Suck my dick, COOTER." Stiles scoffed, shooting him a broad grin right back.

Cooter's eyes widened in shock, his mouth hung open slightly. "Ugh!" He wrinkled his face in disgust once again. "And do YOU suck DEREK'S dick with THAT potty mouth!?" He snapped, biting back a wide grin, just bursting to sprout free across his ash-black lips.

To which, Stiles' eyes widened in shock, her mouth swung fully open. "WHAT!?" And then she said that, when she finally managed to scramble some kind of response together. "Did you SERIOUSLY just say that to me!?" And still, eyes wide, mouth wide, possibly drooling or possibly even catching flies.

"Tell NO ONE!" Cooter exclaimed with a loud cackle before clapping his hands and shimmering away, completely disappearing in a matter of seconds.

And of course, leaving Stiles to stand there, still in her pyjamas, still wide-eyed and slack-jawed...

...For Stiles, her day at school was pretty normal, the regular. The regular, meaning that Scott crept up behind her in the lacrosse locker room first thing. With Isaac appearing literally out of nowhere at lunchtime and giving her another "entertaining" scare. And of course, Ethan was a little more gracious and thoughtful, whereas Aiden just added to the asshole Ninja list in Stiles' mind. And these, these were her so-called friends. Ugh.

So, then, why would it be any different for Stiles when she finally arrived home, later that day after school? Well, it wouldn't be. But then, why the frick was she STILL caught off fricking guard!? Ugh!

Stiles rooted around her rucksack for her house keys and when she finally located them, she glanced back up, only to realise she was no longer standing alone on her front porch. And thankfully, this time, she only flinched, rather than letting out her usual squeal -- as if willing herself to get the hell used to it.

But even so, Derek seemed to know that, that was just what she was trying to do. And of course, the smug, little bitch smirked that usual smug (sexy -- ugh!) smirk of his. "Hi."

Stiles arched a brow. "Hi." She replied, shooting him a humorous grin before unlocking her front door. "What're you doing here?" She asked, merely out of curiosity as she shuffled into her house, leaving the front door open for him.

Derek frowned as he shut the door quietly and followed her down the hallway. "Do I need a reason to come see you?" And even if he was teasing, he still sounded like he really meant that. Like he was worried that he had intruded somehow.

Stiles shuffled into the kitchen and tossed her rucksack onto the breakfast table. She turned around, only to see the werewolf already standing right in front of her. "I guess not." She shot him a small grin, her cheeks already flushing as his face hovered mere inches over her own.

Derek smiled slightly, his hands slowly reaching up to rest lightly on either side of her waist. "I guess that's a good enough answer." He muttered before lowering his lips onto hers.

Stiles smiled against his lips, her hands crawling quickly up his torso before linking around the back of his neck. Tightening her arms around him, pulling him closer, she flicked the tip of her tongue against his bottom lip before gently nipping at it.

Derek growled softly in response, his hands sinking down to her hips before sliding around to give her ass a firm, but gentle squeeze. And when he both heard and felt her softly moan against his mouth, he -- the wolf -- could no longer take it. And for Stiles' sake, he had fought his wolfish instincts, not wanting to freak her out. But scenting wasn't too weird -- at least, he hoped. He was just thankful that the Sheriff wasn't fricking home right now. 'Cause... Damn.

Stiles gasped softly as he pulled his lips from hers, only to place them on the crook of her neck. And then again when he pulled her against him before lifting her up. Automatically, she wrapped her legs around his waist, her arms tightening around his neck. And when she both heard and felt him inhale deeply a few times against the spot under her right ear, she shivered violently, tilting her head back, without even thinking. And, holy fuck, yes, that must have been the right thing to do because --

Derek groaned quietly, already feeling the painful straining inside his stupid jeans. And somehow, as if on auto-pilot, he managed to walk across the kitchen, sitting her on top of the nearest counter top. His hands slid back up, resting at her hips as he settled to stand between her thighs. He squeezed her sides gently as he sucked a red mark into the side of her neck.

Stiles inhaled sharply as he pulled her forward a little, but just enough to feel his hard-on pressed right up against her already aching core. "Derek..." She whispered, her hands sliding across to rest on his broad shoulders.

"I missed you." Derek mumbled, leaving a trail of feather-light kisses up and down her neck.

Stiles shivered, smiling faintly to herself. "I love you." She whispered back, her smile growing slightly as she felt him pull back. And she should have felt bad, because in that moment she realised it wasn't her mother after all; she wasn't Stiles' anchor. But now, Stiles only felt bad for NOT feeling bad at all. God, damn it!

Derek stared back at her with his usual mercilessly intense (sexy -- ugh!) gaze, their eyes now level from where she was still perched and "trapped" by the werewolf. And yes, she had said it before, but it felt different this time, somehow, for whatever reason, he didn't question, because he didn't give a shit.


	86. Chapter 86

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Say if a caveman and an astronaut got into a fight -- who would win?"

The next day, after school, knowing her father wasn't going to be home at all tonight, she hopped back into her Jeep and drove over to the loft. And when she pulled up across the street, she spotted Ethan walking out of the building and over to his motorcycle. Frowning curiously, she hopped out, locking the Jeep up before making her way across the street, over to the ex-Alpha, Alpha twin.

"Hey, Stiles." Ethan greeted her with his usual friendly smile.

"Hey." Stiles smiled back. "What's going on?" She asked, shooting him a look of intrigue.

"Nothing much. Just returning Derek's portable TV, 'cause Aiden's a lazy asshole. He always has been and he always will be, unfortunately." Ethan explained, rolling his eyes in irritation.

Stiles chuckled lightly. "Right."

"And why are YOU here? Need I EVEN ask..." Ethan added that last part, shooting her a cheeky grin and a knowing look.

Stiles rolled her eyes, though, she couldn't help smiling slightly. Oh, yeah, and fricking blushing. Again. Ugh.

"Well, all I can say to you right now is; good fucking luck." Ethan snorted lightly as he mounted his motorcycle.

"Why? What's going on?" Stiles frowned, looking somewhere between confused and slightly concerned.

"Derek and Cora have been in a screaming match against one another for near enough, the last fricking hour." Ethan explained. "Seriously, I don't even know how the fuck it started. And it's not even over something important."

Stiles' frowned deepened slightly. "What're they arguing about?"

"I don't even know anymore. I don't even think THEY know anymore, either." Ethan scoffed, shaking his head in dismay. "But anyway, Stilinski, I'm gone. Have fun." He shot her another cheeky grin as he shoved the keys into the ignition.

"Yeah. Thanks." Stiles scoffed lightly, shooting him a playful glare as she shuffled towards the building.

Ethan simply chuckled in amusement before staring up his motorcycle, the engine roaring into life as he then sped off, like a werebat out of Hell...

...Stiles eyes widened in surprise and shock -- she had heard Derek and Cora yelling at one another even before hauling along the elevator doors. And it was even fricking worse when she stepped slowly out, her eyes landing on the werewolves sizing each other up.

"You are insufferable!" Derek yelled, glaring down at her as he panted loudly in anger.

"And YOU are just a fucking douchebag!" Cora yelled back, glaring defiantly back up at him as he towered over her, not afraid, one little bit.

"No. YOU are just an idiot!" Derek snapped back. "The human race HAVE come a long way! It's called; 'evolving!" He shot her a "duh" look.

Stiles frowned, now utterly confused as she watched the two siblings -- who were either still totally unaware of her presence, or just ignoring her, for now. Either way, she was okay with that for now, as well. Because -- well, sue her for it, but this shit was kind of funny to witness. And kind of adorable -- well, on sourwolf's part, of course.

"No. It's called 'bullshit'!" Cora snapped back. "Even evolution can't take away basic human instinct!" She argued back. "And you should know that! We're fucking werewolves!"

Derek snarled angrily, and somehow while pouting slightly. "Cora, seriously --" His tone was low now, almost warning her to back the fuck off.

"No!" And of course, Cora wasn't having any of it. "No! Don't try to shut this conversation down, just because you know I'm right!" She snapped angrily. "Just because YOU think you're right all the damn time --"

And this time, Derek cut her off in response, now getting worked up all over again. "This isn't about me, you little brat!" He snarled loudly, his eyes burning red.

"Go fuck yourself, DERP!" Cora scoffed, snarled his old nickname (which she knew he HATED) back at him, her own eyes burning golden in defiance.

"Whoa!" Stiles finally decided to step in, her hand held up. Both wolves glanced up at her, looking slightly surprised to see her. Huh. Maybe they didn't know she was there all along, after all. Huh. Funny. "Let's ALL just CALM the fuck DOWN, shall we?"

"How long have you been here?" Derek frowned, feeling annoyed, with himself.

Stiles grinned, unable to help herself. "Like, a full five minutes."

Derek narrowed his eyes playfully.

Cora simply rolled her eyes, folding her arms over her chest, still obviously annoyed with her brother.

"So, um..." Stiles bit back another amused grin, trying to serious. Yeah, it was difficult for her. "Is this maybe an issue that we need to discuss with the pack?"

Cora glared at her brother in response, staying quiet, for now, anyway.

"No." Derek answered, and a little too quickly as he then cursed himself mentally.

Stiles arched a brow, showing that she didn't quite believe him. "Are you sure?" She asked, her tone stern and a little taunting.

"Yeah. It's nothing." Derek nodded, though, now also blushing slightly. Was he embarrassed?

Stiles brow rose further as her gaze slowly drifted over to the younger wolf.

And that was when Cora finally snapped. "Okay, look --" She began, ignoring her brother's glare on her.

"Cora, shut up." Derek muttered.

Stiles smirked slightly, her intrigue blowing her mind now.

Alas, (predictably) Cora only continued. "Say if a caveman and an astronaut got into a fight -- who would win?" She asked, her tone as serious as her expression.

Stiles opened her mouth slightly before shutting it again, her eyes slightly narrowed in confusion again. "I'm sorry, I... I don't..." She was speechless, that's what she was. And it WAS hilarious, she knew that, but her brain hadn't yet seemed to realise that just yet. But when it did, she was going to piss herself laughing, that was for fricking sure. And at that though, she hoped that wouldn't happen until she was back in the comfort of her own home. "And you've both been yelling at one another for the last hour over this?" She asked, glancing between them blankly.

Derek sighed quietly in annoyance, glaring back over at his sister, while mentally cursing himself for blushing like an idiot.

"Yeah. And?" Cora snarked. "Well?" She then asked, shooting the human an expectant look. "You still go to school. And you're really smart. You should know this type of shit."

"Um..." Stiles forced her brain to actually process the logical side of that question -- what little there way, anyway. "Well..." She frowned thoughtfully. "First of all; do either of them have any weapons?" She asked lightly.

To which, both siblings responded with a resounding; "NO!"

...Chris sighed tiredly as he plopped lazily down onto his couch. "Why didn't you tell me right away?" He asked softly, glancing up at his daughter in a little confusion.

Allison shrugged limply. "I didn't wanna worry you." She explained, only earning a scalding frown from her father. "Besides, Scott said that Gerard captured Cora and roughed her up pretty bad. I was kinda focussed more on her at the time." And it wasn't a total lie.

Chris wasn't pleased, but he nodded in acceptance anyway. "Did it say anything else?" He asked.

Allison shook her head as she slumped down on the couch beside him. "I'm scared, dad." She mumbled quietly as she snuggled into his side.

"Hey," Chris wrapped his arms around her, pressing a soft kiss to the top of her head. "Don't you worry about a thing. I'll die before I ever let him touch you again."

"That's just one more thing I'm scared of." Allison glanced miserably up at him, her chin resting against his chest. "I don't wanna lose you. I don't wanna lose anyone... I'm tired of losing people that I love."

Chris sighed tiredly once more and nodded as he replied softly. "Me, too, sweetheart. Me, too..."

...Cora shot her brother one last glare before making her swift exit, using the stairs instead.

Stiles smirked to herself as she watched the siblings, from her perch on the table, by the large window.

Derek simply glared after his little sister, his arms crossed over his chest.

And when she was sure they were finally alone, Stiles spoke up. "So, out of curiosity -- which side of the fence are you on?" She asked lightly, though, wearing a highly amused grin.

Derek unfolded his arms and turned around to face her. "The caveman -- superior strength and all." He stated simply with a lazy shrug. He then sauntered slowly over to her, fighting back the urge to smirk smugly when he heard her heartbeat race slightly.

Stiles chuckled lightly. "Obviously." Oh, the disturbing kind of funny located there. 'Such an old-fashioned sourwolf.'

Derek narrowed his eyes at her as he reached her. "And what's that supposed to mean?" He muttered rather snootily as he slowly crawled forward, his hands settling over either side of her waist, his waist nested comfortably between her thighs.

"Nothing." Stiles replied, her voice quiet and a small, but all too innocent grin still attached to her lips.

"I don't believe you." Derek mumbled quietly as he leant forward and pressed a short, but sweet kiss to her lips.

Stiles' grin only widened, again. "Tough titty." She mumbled back before reaching up and wrapping her arms around the back of his neck to pull him back down for another kiss...

...Lydia scoffed loudly as she glanced around the McCall living room. "This isn't much of a pack meeting." She stated, looking deeply unimpressed as she folded her leg across the other from her perch in the middle of the couch. "Half the pack are absent." She added, shooting the True Alpha a pointed look.

Scott sighed loudly and nodded in acknowledgement. "Yeah, but Stiles had other plans tonight, and I kinda owe her after being a dick last week."

Lydia scoffed once again and nodded. "You're not wrong there."

Scott rolled his eyes.

Isaac smirked, his eyes lit up in amusement. "So, Stiles and Derek ditched us, huh?" He chuckled lightly. "I wonder what they're doing right now..."

Scott let out a low, warning growl. "Shut up, Lahey." He snapped, now glaring at the young, curly-haired Beta.

"Don't start again." Allison scalded both werewolves as she sauntered back into the room with a soda in her hand. "I've already got a wicked headache, as it is. So just stop." She mumbled pleadingly as she plopped down on the couch beside the redhead.

"And Ethan's meeting Danny's parents over a family dinner tonight." Aiden snorted in amusement. "Rather him, than me."

To which, Lydia only glared over at her so-called boyfriend.

"Cora said she'll be here after she's grabbed a bite to eat." Isaac piped up.

"What -- are you two a thing now?" Aiden asked.

"Kinda." Isaac mumbled, smiling sheepishly and blushing heavily.

Aiden cackled loudly. "My man works fast." He shot the younger wolf an approving grin.

"Shut up." Isaac muttered pathetically. "It's not like that... We haven't..."

Aiden cackled even louder. "Oh, my God! Seriously!?" He exclaimed, his eyes widened in both shock and utter glee.

"It's none of your business!" Isaac barked, now glaring at him.

"Ugh! Enough!" Scott snarled, his eyes burning red. He smirked slightly in triumph then when the two wolves, both Beta [b]and[/b] Alpha cowered back slightly at his firm tone and then quickly averted both their gazes from his.

Lydia smirked slightly in amusement to herself, Allison rolling her eyes as she sipped tiredly at her soda can.

"Okay," Scott said, now calm and collected again. "The main reason I wanted to call a meeting was mainly for a headcount... Which failed completely. So, I guess we'll have to do this again tomorrow."

"Ugh." Lydia rolled her eyes this time. "Wonderful. 'Cause I don't have plans." She stated, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Scott scowled at the redhead. "Lydia, this is serious. Gerard is back. And we need to stay ahead of the game... Whatever stupid game he's playing THIS time." He added that last part with a dark glare, his jaw clenching slightly in anger. He didn't hate many people. Hate wasn't something that was ever strong in his nature. He didn't even really hate his father. Though, he hated his father for leaving him. But that was a entirely different story. And he didn't even really hate Deucalion. He understood the man's reasons and how he had chosen the wrong path under horrid circumstances. But Gerard. Gerard be hated. For so many reasons. And THAT was also an entirely different story. Because he knew Allison. And he, of course, knew Stiles. And he knew both girls were hiding something from him; from everyone, in fact.


	87. Chapter 87

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Maybe I should just kill you right now, instead."

"Wait a sec' --" Lydia narrowed her eyes slightly, looking somewhere between suspicious and confused. "Why'd he tell you he agreed with Cora, if he spent the last hour arguing with her over it?"

Stiles grinned, looking highly amused. "Isn't it obvious? He just wanted to annoy her, 'cause he could." She explained with a light chuckle. Stiles didn't really want to explain how it was also, because Derek said that he'd missed having Laura around -- whom he used to annoy the crap out of, anyway. He had told Stiles that it felt nice to have his baby sister around him again, how he still ached over the loss of his big sister; his mother, after their actual mother; his protector; his Alpha; his everything. No, Stiles didn't need to tell them any of that. Or anyone, for that matter. She understood how privacy worked, how secrets worked, and most of all, how painful those kind of memories really were. And along with everything else, Stiles felt deeply connected to Derek through that common pain they both felt, near enough both their entire lives.

"Uh-huh." Lydia smirked knowingly. "More like, he wanted to get rid of her before YOU got there."

Allison chuckled at the redhead.

Stiles flushed, as usual. Ugh. "No, actually. He didn't even know I was on my way over." She replied snootily. "Hell, they didn't even realise that I'd been standing there for a full five minutes, just watching them argue... It was actually really funny... Oddly disturbing and new... But funny." She added with a smirk of her own.

"Whatever." Lydia rolled her eyes, though, she was still smirking. "I still stand by my statement. I bet he was just kicking her out so that he could call you right after." She added that last part, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.

"Whatever." Stiles mimicked, shooting the redhead a crinkled expression.

Again, Lydia rolled her eyes, her smirk now growing, because she knew she was right. 'Duh. I'm ALWAYS right... It's a wonderful curse.'

"So, you and Scott are okay now -- right?" Allison asked, looking both eager and hopeful.

Stiles smiled and nodded. "Yup. It's all good."

Allison smiled, looking somewhat relieved.

"YOU better not have called HIM." Lydia shot the oldest girl a stern look.

Stiles snorted quietly. "Nah. He called me Friday, after school. He explained why he acted like such a douche, apologised and promised to never do it again after I half-heartedly threatened him. Oh, which is also when I found Cora, passed out, in the back of my Jeep."

Both girls simply nodded.

"Yeah. So, I took Cora home," Stiles explained, making sure to leave out the part about going all Dark Skywalker on creeperwolf's ass. "Then drove myself home. Scott stayed over and I beat his ass a million times over on Mortal Combat. Seriously," She rolled her eyes, wearing a small, but fond grin. "He nearly cried again, he lost THAT bad. I don't know why he even bothers anymore."

"Determination." Allison chirped with a cheesy grin. "It's one of his finer qualities."

"Ugh. Get me a bucket." Stiles scoffed, smirking in amusement as Allison merely shot her a playful glare.

"Please," Lydia scoffed back as she continued to file her nails. "Like you and Derek are ANY better."

Stiles glared pathetically. "Derek doesn't do public affection..." She scowled slightly. "And neither do I, actually." She stated with realisation. No, she was just fine with the way things were between them. MORE than fine, in fact.

"Ha! Yeah! Good one, Stilinski!" Lydia chimed, clearly taunting. "The way he looks at you all dreamy-eyed all the time and thinks that no one notices?" She smirked widely, her ocean green orbs twinkling brightly. "Thinks your DAD doesn't notice..." She added, trailing purposefully off.

Stiles' eyes widened instantly. "What?"

"You mean, you didn't even know?" Lydia arched a brow, looking somewhat surprised now.

Allison, too, though, she looked slightly better. "Derek didn't tell you?" She chuckled lightly. "Huh... I get that, though." She nodded, a look of understanding spreading across her face.

"What?" And now, Stiles was just confused, again. "What didn't he tell me?" And now, Stiles felt slightly annoyed, angry, even. "What is he hiding from me NOW!?" She barked, her eyes narrowing instantly.

"No, it's nothing bad." Lydia quickly piped up, shooting her a reassuring look. "Well, not for YOU, anyway..." She added, smirking in amusement.

Stiles calmed down a little, seeing as Lydia was the one who wanted her and Derek to be together. So Stiles decided to trust the redhead. And she did, really. They, especially, had been through a lot together.

"Yeah," Allison nodded in agreement with the redhead. "He was probably just too embarrassed to say anything. Or maybe he just didn't want you to worry."

Stiles rolled her eyes at that last part. Yep. That sounded like Derek. He worried too much. "What?" She repeated, looking slightly confused again. "Worry me about what?"

"You're dad threatened to shoot Derek dead if he ever hurt you in any way." Lydia explained simply, grinning widely in amusement.

"What!?" Stiles' eyes widened once, again. "Wait -- how do YOU know that?" She narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the redhead, again.

"Cora told me." Lydia replied with a casual shrug.

"Figures. Little gossip whore." Stiles mumbled with a roll of her eyes.

"Uh-oh, did we I get Der-Bear into trouble?" Lydia chirped, all too sweetly.

Stiles smirked. "No." She retorted with another, more playful roll of her eyes.

"Good." Lydia chimed, grinning widely. "So...?" She arched an expectant brow.

"'So...?'" Stiles arched a brow back, looking slightly lost, again.

"You and Derek," Allison piped up, also grinning from ear to fricking ear. Ugh.

Stiles rolled her eyes, yet again. "Don't you girls EVER quit?" She asked through slightly pleading eyes.

Both girls simply grinned even wider, while simultaneously shaking their heads in response.

"Who wants another shot?" Lydia chirped.

Stiles narrowed her eyes, yet again. "Hey! No! I'm already a little tipsy. Do NOT try to get me drunk, so that I talk!" She accused.

Lydia gasped, looking rather offended. "I would NEVER!"

"Yeah." Allison chuckled as she hopped off of her bed and grabbed the half empty bottle of golden tequila from her desk. "Besides, you already talk enough for the our entire pack."

"Go suck a fuck." Stiles hissed, shooting her a playful glare.

Allison laughed at that as she plopped back down onto her bed, in between both the older girls. "Donnie Darko. Nice."

Stiles merely grinned, and proudly.

"So?" Lydia repeated as she held up her large shot glass. "Are you gonna tell us ANYTHING?" She shot the other girl a sweet pleading sort of look, one she knew Stiles always gave into.

And right on cue, Stiles glared back at her, though, it was clear in her ever-expression-filled doe orbs that her resolve was already crumbling away, and quickly. Then again, maybe it was just the tequila. Either way, it was a happening. And it was a good thing. Just, not for Stiles, really.

Allison grinned enthusiastically as Stiles held up her empty shot glass, too.

"Fine." Stiles grumbled. "But I swear to God, if you tell ANYONE --"

"What is said in this room, between us girls, stays in this room, between us girls." Lydia solemnly pledged, holding up her (free) right hand for emphasis.

"Here, here." Allison nodded her agreement as she poured herself another shot before setting the bottle on top of her nightstand.

Stiles rolled her eyes. And she didn't want to smile. In fact, she was biting back that urge right now, out of mere defiance. "Fine."

"Okay, good." Lydia chirped, looking very pleased, to say the least. "First of all; let's drink to that, shall we?" She grinned, raising her glass.

Allison nodded, also grinning as she eagerly raised her own glass.

"Yeah, okay, whatever." Stiles raised her glass.

"To the werewolves!" Allison cheered before knocking back her shot in one large gulp.

"Well," Stiles arched a brow, smirking slightly in amusement. And she couldn't help herself. Because she IS Stiles. Duh. "I guess we finally know why Scotty likes you so much." She winked suggestively.

Lydia let out a rather unladylike snort of amusement.

Allison merely winked back at them both. "You know it!" She chirped, wiggling her eyebrows.

To which, both Stiles and Lydia wrinkled their faces in disgust.

"Allison!" Lydia scoffed loudly in outrage, now glaring in shock.

"SHE started it!" Allison roared with laughter, barely managing to point an accusing finger over at Stiles.

"Hey, I was just joking and then YOU took it to a WHOLE other disturbing level." Stiles stated simply. Though, (also disturbingly) she had to fight back another amused grin.

"Quit trying to stall, anyway, Stilinski." Lydia snipped, shooting her a stern look. "Details. NOW." She added with a wide grin.

Stiles rolled her eyes. "What'd you wanna know?" She mumbled as she sipped at her shot.

"Have you two had sex yet?" Allison asked without missing a beat.

"Wow." Lydia arched a brow at the huntress. "Okay, we're just jumping right in, here, huh?"

Allison grinned, nodding eagerly at the redhead before glancing just as enthusiastically over at the lighter brunette. "Well? Have you?"

"No." Stiles scowled, ignoring her baking cheeks. Ugh. WHY did she agree, again? Oh, yeah -- she didn't! She was fricking cornered, yet again. Ugh.

"Well, THAT'S obvious." Lydia stated, smiling cheekily when Stiles glared at her. "But SOMETHING happened..."

Stiles mentally cursed her stupid face for giving her away.

"I KNEW it!" Lydia chimed.

"What? WHAT happened?" Allison asked, her eyes widened in suspension.

"N-nothing." Stiles mentally cursed herself again.

"Bull... Shit!" Lydia chuckled loudly.

"Stiles, you promised!" Allison pouted.

Stiles arched a brow. "Actually, no, I didn't."

Allison glared at her, Lydia, too, both girls looking as deeply unimpressed as one another.

"Ugh! Fine!" Stiles exclaimed in exasperation. "We kinda... Fooled around, a little..."

Lydia arched a brow, looking very intrigued. "Like... Making out or...?"

Stiles nodded limply. "Yeah... And... Stuff..." God, why was it so hard to talk about? Why should she even have to!? Ugh!

"'Stuff'?" Allison asked, looking rather impatient now.

Stiles glared at her. "Ugh. He-went-down-on-me -- okay?" She grumbled out, as quickly as she possibly could.

And then, there was a pause, a small silence before both the banshee and the huntress simultaneously let out a loud squeal.

Stiles winced slightly at the loud and shrill noise they made together. "Oh, my God. PLEASE shut up." She grumbled.

"WHAT is WRONG with YOU!?" Allison squeaked, scowling slightly in confusion.

"Yeah! Why're you being such a buzzkill!?" Lydia scalded, just looking sorely disappointed now.

Stiles glared at them both. "'Cause I don't do girly talks. OR sex talks." She stated simply. 'And I don't wanna fucking talk about MY sex life.' Ugh.

"Well -- as YOU like to say; tough titty." Lydia huffed out snootily. "So, how was it?" She asked seriously.

"Um... Awesome?" Stiles arched a brow, shooting her a "duh" look.

"REALLY?" Lydia arched a brow back, looking somewhat surprised. "So, I guess that means he made you... Arrive?" She smirked smugly.

Stiles blushed heavily, barely managing to nod in response. "Yeah, actually, he, uh... He... He kinda... Um..." God, was she really going to tell them?

And while Allison was still slightly confused, Lydia's eyes suddenly widened in realisation. "No... Fucking... Way!"

Stiles glanced up at her, now looking slightly confused, as well.

"He didn't..." Lydia's eyes widened even more. "Oh, my gosh! He totally DID!" She squealed, now grinning from ear to ear.

"Did what?" Allison asked, now looking desperately between the two for some answers. Any fucking answers! "He did, WHAT!?"

Lydia giggled loudly as she knocked back another shot. "Our little Stiles is a squirter."

To which, Allison's eyes widened and Stiles blushed like a fucking madwoman in heat or something. Ugh. Although, at least she didn't have to say the words herself. 'Yeah... Thanks, Evil Red.' She thought, confusingly feeling somewhere between annoyed and relieved.

"Holy fucking Hell!" Lydia chuckled, shaking her head in amazement. "Ugh. It WOULD be Derek. SO unfair."

Allison nodded in agreement with the redhead.

Stiles frowned slightly. "What's THAT supposed to mean?" She asked, looking confused again.

"It means that we have at least ONE guy in our pack who knows how to make a lady... Gush." Allison grinned wickedly.

Still, somehow, Stiles ignored her burning face -- actually, her fucking [b]entire[/b] burning body at this point.

"What she said." Lydia nodded. "I thought it was just Aiden. Not even Jackson was very good at it. Either that, or he was probably just a lazy asshole." She stated with a roll of her eyes.

"Okay, ew." Stiles wrinkled her nose. "Just 'cause you wanna know about MY details, doesn't mean I wanna know about YOURS in return."

Lydia simply smirked.

"It's true, though." Allison added with a casual shrug. "I mean, the sex is great -- REALLY great -- but Scott really doesn't know what he's doing down there with his hands... Or his mouth."

"Stop! God! Ew!" Stiles glared at the huntress. "Bitch, that's my bro you're talking about! I don't EVER wanna know about that shit! Ugh!" She wrinkled her nose in disgust.

Lydia simply laughed, fondly shaking her head at her girlfriends...

...Stiles sighed tiredly as she closed her bedroom door behind her. And then, as she turned around, unzipping her hoodie in the process, her eyes landed on a large, dark figure standing in the corner of her room. She gasped loudly in fright, her heart racing as her eyes then widened. "Who the FUCK are you!? And what the FUCK are you doing in my house!?" She snapped, trying her best to sound intimidating.

The man chuckled lightly in amusement before finally stepping out of the shadows, his bright brown orbs reflecting the moonlight flooding through her bedroom window. "Hello, Stiles."

Stiles heart stuttered, her eyes widening even more as she recognised the voice and then the face that belonged with it. 'No...' Her heart then began to race even harder. 'No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. N --'

"Did you miss me, my dear?" Gerard asked, shooting her an oddly pleasant (but still -- always -- disturbing) smile.

"What'd YOU want!?" Stiles snapped with a glare, the adrenaline now pumping through her entire body. Though, she just didn't know whether to be completely infuriated or utterly afraid right now.

"You're holding back..."

'Cooter?' Stiles frowned slightly, trying to stay focussed.

"STOP holding back, Stiles..."

"I've come to see how you are, of course." Gerard explained, pouting obscenely. "Because I missed YOU."

And Stiles shivered slightly in disgust as she felt her skin begin to crawl and itch unpleasantly.

"Don't pull away from it... Trust me... Feel it... Use it..."

Stiles shook her head, her eyes screwing shut for a second. "I can't..." She whispered.

Gerard arched a brow, a look of curiosity flashing briefly over his expression. "You don't have to be afraid of me, my darling."

"I am NOT your darling!" Stiles snapped, glaring at him, again. "I'm not your ANYTHING!"

"THAT'S it... FEEL it... USE it..."

But before Stiles could even get out her next breath, Gerard was already in front of her with a hand wrapped tightly around her throat. Stiles' eyes widened in fear, all of her anger quickly draining at his horrid touch.

"Now, you listened to me, you pathetic, little, whore," Gerard hissed, his tone low and as stern as his gaze, of which had gone from brown to completely black. "I came back for three reasons; Allison, YOU, and to kill those stupid wolves you both love so much." He snarled, his grip on her neck tightening considerably.

Stiles choked loudly, already feeling dizzy. "P-please..." She wheezed, staring helplessly back up at him.

Gerard's angry expression suddenly morphed into one of utter amusement. He chuckled loudly, then finally letting her go by shoving her carelessly to the floor at his feet. "Pathetic." He scoffed, glancing down at her. "Maybe I should just kill you right now, instead."

And Stiles would have retorted with a snarky comeback, but she WAS a little preoccupied by the feeling of utter fear. Oh, and she was then also a little distracted -- not to mention SO fucking relieved -- when she heard the familiar sound of a loud and angry roar. She finally scrambled back up onto her feet, backing as far away from Gerard as possible, her heart still jack-hammering in her chest.

Gerard rolled his eyes before turning slowly around to see what all the noise was about. And standing in the doorway, he glared over at the piece of shit that had gotten his Kate killed. "YOU!" He hissed.

"Yeah." Derek grunted, his canines bared and his eyes seething red. "ME..."


	88. Chapter 88

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I'll come back for you."

"Stiles," Derek glanced over at her, his angry, red orbs softening slightly. "Come here. Come to me." He slowly reached up, holding out one of his clawed hands to her.

Stiles glanced helplessly at his hand, then warily glancing the evil, old man, smirking as he stood in her way. And then, without allowing her thoughts to run off on her again, she took a deep breath before making a beeline towards the werewolf.

Gerard chuckled loudly in amusement as his arm shot out just in time, his hand grasping her around the throat, again. "Oh, I don't think so, my dear." He muttered lowly as a wicked smirk curled slowly at the corners of his lips.

Stiles gasped and choked, her eyes widening in terror, her gaze now glued to the old man -- whatever the hell he was.

Derek's jaw tightened, his sharp teeth grinding loudly as he let out a low, threatening growl. "Let. Her. Go." He grunted, his red irises burning even brighter.

And then came an even lower, gruffer-sounding snarl from the doorway. "NOW."

Derek had sensed Scott come up behind him in the doorway, but he was obviously a LITTLE too preoccupied to care right now.

Gerard, however, grinned widely, almost excitedly as his gaze settled on the familiar face. "Scott!" He chimed. "It's SO good to see you." He said -- like he wasn't even aware of the quivering girl in his grasp anymore. Motherfucker.

Scott stood beside the other Alpha, his eyes still brown, though, his claws full-length and ready to do some -- no, a shit-load of damage. "You have exactly three seconds to let her the fuck go." He hissed lowly, his eyes narrowing.

"Or what?" Gerard arched a brow, smirking as he tightened his grip around Stiles' neck, causing her to panic and choke even louder.

"Son of a --" Derek snarled as he finally moved towards them both.

"Derek." Scott scowled at him, shaking his head.

To which, Derek glared furiously, but did as he was told.

Scott slowly turned back to face the old man, his expression completely calm, somehow. "Okay," He sighed tiredly, his eyes slowly, finally turning and burning red. "Your time's up."

Gerard simply arched his brow again, looking somewhere between amused and now also intrigued.

Scott simply smirked. "Okay." He nodded. "Derek."

To which, this time, Derek let out a loud, angry roar before finally lunging into action.

And as Scott had predicted, Gerard instantly tossed Stiles' aside to catch the other Alpha by the throat instead. And as the two began to struggle against one another, Scott instantly darted over to his best friend.

"Thanks, Scotty." Stiles breathed, shooting him a weak and rather dazed smile.

Scott smiled back as he crouched down beside her. "Thank me later." He quickly slipped an arm around the back of her waist, his other sliding under his knees. "Are you okay?" He asked as he lifted her up and darted out of the room.

"Yeah." Stiles smiled faintly.

Scott frowned as he stalked down the stairs quickly before setting her carefully down on her feet at the bottom. Obviously, he knew she was lying. But then again, it was probably stupid of him to ask in the first place.

"Go help Derek." Stiles interrupted his thoughts, her expression now worried as she glanced back up the staircase.

Scott nodded. "Stay here until we come back." He told her before darting back up the stairs.

Stiles glared after him. "Pff..."

...Derek growled, shoving the old, man away from him. "What the fuck are you!?" He snarled angrily. Because this asshole sure as fuck didn't smell human anymore. Not completely, anyway.

"Wouldn't YOU like to like to know?" Gerard taunted back with a wide smirk.

"What'd you want, Gerard?" Scott asked, appearing in the doorway, again.

Gerard snorted, still looking rather amused, but also slightly annoyed now. "Isn't it obvious?" He scoffed. "What I've ALWAYS wanted; your kind eradicated, completely." He stated venomously.

"Stiles ISN'T a werewolf, dumbass." Derek snapped back through his sharp teeth, his burning red orbs still narrowed hatefully.

"Even so," Gerard shrugged casually. "She runs with you. That makes her one of you. Still," He grinned slyly. "She IS rather a pretty, little thing, isn't she?"

To which, of course, both wolves couldn't help reacting by lunging simultaneously for the old man. And, surprisingly, to which, Gerard simply reacted by grabbing them both by their throats. The wolves' eyes widened in shock as the old man effortlessly lifted them both up, their feet now dangling inches off of the floor.

"SO predictable." Gerard chuckled, glancing in amusement up at them both.

"Hey, coffin-dodger!"

Gerard smirked as he heard Stiles' angry voice behind him, in the doorway. Slowly, with the werewolves still in his iron-grasp, he turned around to face her.

Stiles stood there, her trusty baseball bat in her hands, held up and ready to beat the shit out of the old man. "Put my boys down now, right fucking now, or I'm gonna bat your wrinkly, old, disgusting face off!" She roared, her eyes narrowing.

"A wooden baseball bat? Seriously?"

"Not NOW, Cooter!" Stiles snapped.

"Psh... Rude..."

"Seriously, dude, I mean it!" Stiles snapped at the old man, her eyes still narrowed.

To her surprise, Gerard did as he was told. Though, that being said, he DID still achieve that by roughly tossing both wolves across the room, sending them both crashing into the wall, one after the other, then landing harshly on one another in a tangle of painful limbs.

Stiles' jumped, but managed to hold on to her frightened squeak as her hands tightened around the bat for some sort of safety net.

Gerard's smirk widened as he slowly turned back to face her. "Go ahead." He taunted, simply just standing there and waiting for her.

Stiles glanced nervously over to the semi-conscious werewolves, groaning in pain before glancing back to the old man. "G-get out." She glared back at him in determination.

"Stiles, please --"

"I can't." Stiles whispered quickly. "I'm too afraid."

Gerard titled his head, staring curiously at her. He then slowly began to make his way towards her, almost taunting her with how slow he moved.

Stiles stood, frozen in her place, her entire body seizing up and going completely numb as he slowly began to approach her. "Don't --" Her breathing hitched, her grip loosening as the bat slipped from her fingers, clattering to the ground at her feet.

"Stiles --"

"Stiles!" Derek groaned as he forced himself onto his feet as quickly as he possibly could.

"I can't!" Stiles cried, screwing her eyes shut and now simply just waiting. Waiting to die. Or worse... And then, it never came, instead, came the sudden loud and angry roar, louder than Stiles had ever heard. Her eyes then snapped open again, her gaze quickly landing on the familiar face of her demon guide. Though, he looked angry, incredibly angry; an expression she had never seen on him before, she suddenly realised.

Derek's eyes widened as he halted, though, his claws still out and ready.

"Cooter," Stiles breathed deeply, relief flooding through her as she felt her limbs loosen up.

Gerard's eyes widened in fright. "YOU!?"

"Yes, me, asshole." Cooter snipped, glaring angrily down at the younger demon.

"Wait -- you know him!?" Stiles asked, staring incredulously at her demon guide.

Derek simply stared in confusion now as Scott slowly hauled himself up beside him. "What the hell --" Scott arched a brow at the demon. "Who're you?" He asked, now looking as confused as the other Alpha.

"This is Cooter." Stiles explained simply.

"Oh." Scott nodded in acknowledgement. "Hi."

"Yeah, hi. Nice to meet ya." Cooter nodded curtly back, shooting the True Alpha a pleasant smile before turning his angry, red gaze back to the other demon. "YOU,"

"I didn't know she was yours." Gerard grunted, now glaring up at the larger demon.

"Well, now you do." Cooter snipped. "So, get lost."

"As you wish." Gerard snarked, smirking as he quickly lunged forward, wrapping his arms around the demon's neck.

The werewolves stood in shock, their eyes widened as Stiles' eyes widened in horror, cringing when the loud crack of the demon's neck erupted throughout her bedroom. "COOTER!" She screamed.

Gerard smirked as he turned to face her, Cooter's now limp body slipping to the ground with a heavy thud. "Oh, don't worry, my dear. He'll be awake in no time."

Derek lunged without a second thought, Gerard grabbing him by the throat, once again. Derek snarled loudly in pain when the old man reached out with his other hand, grabbing his wrist and snapping it like a fricking twig.

Scott lunged, Gerard easily swatting the smaller Alpha away with a harsh back-handed slap to the face.

Derek roared, reaching up with his non-broken wrist to punch the old man in the face. However, Gerard simply grabbed his wrist, snapping that one, too. Derek snarled loudly in pain, glaring down at the old man.

Gerard chuckled loudly, tightening his grip around the werewolf's neck. He quickly slipped his free hand into his jacket pocket, pulling out a large butcher's knife stabbing the beast in the stomach. He smirked in satisfaction when the werewolf roared loudly in pain and then twisted the blade.

"DEREK!" Stiles screamed. "Motherfucker!" She roared before scrambling to pick up her baseball bat. And this time, she wasn't going to chicken-shit out of it!

Gerard scoffed snootily as he shoved the wounded werewolf to the ground. He swirled around just in time to grab the lunging teenager's bat in mid-swing. "Not yet, my dear."

"I'll KILL you!" Stiles snapped, struggling to rip the bat free from his iron-grasp.

Gerard smirked wickedly down at her as he easily crushed the end of her bat into splinters. "I'll come back for you." He told her. "After I have Allison back by my side." He stated as he walked passed her and towards the open doorway.

Stiles scoffed loudly. "She will NEVER be with you!"

Gerard shot her a sinister grin over his shoulder. "We shall see, soon enough."


	89. Chapter 89

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "That's my girl."

Derek winced as he grabbed the end of the knife protruding from his chest, gritting his teeth and growling lowly when he quickly yanked the blade from his flesh before tossing it onto her desk. He turned around slowly then, when he felt an all too familiar presence walk up to him. "Hey." He said softly, offering a small smile. He lifted his arm slowly, gently resting his hand on the back of her neck. "Are you okay?" And he knew it was a stupid question, but it was almost a reflex to ask now.

Stiles nodded limply, her worried orbs glued to the bloody wound on the werewolf's lower stomach. "You're hurt." She whispered, unable to find her voice anymore at this point.

Derek glanced briefly down at his already healing wound. "I'll heal." He stated simply. He knew that he didn't even need to tell her that, but he could tell she needed that little bit of reassurance right now.

Stiles simply nodded again. "Scott," She rasped, slowly turning to face the other werewolf. "Are you okay?" She asked, eyeing him with concern.

Scott huffed angrily as he hauled himself away from her bedroom window. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just pissed off."

"You're not the only one." Derek muttered with a glare.

"Yeah." Scott nodded. "You gonna be okay, dude?" He asked, eyeing the older wolf with some concern.

"Yeah." Derek nodded. "But that son of a --"

"MOTHERFUCKER!"

The three all jumped; the wolves in shock and Stiles mainly in fright at the sudden eruption of a loud and ferocious roar. The trio's eyes widened as they watched the large demon slowly rise to his feet before cracking his neck loudly as he rolled his large, horned head around on his broad, armered shoulders.

"WHERE is he!?" Cooter yelled, his deep voice lightly shaking the walls and rattling the window as his large, crimson orbs darted angrily around.

"Dude... He kicked our asses and then fucked off on his wrinkly, high horse." Scott explained simply. Though, he was glaring, again.

Cooter let out a low snarl. "I'm gonna KILL him!" He glanced over to the human. "Stiles, bub, I'm gonna have to love you and lump you right now. But I'll be in touch. Always." He chirped, shooting her a bright smile before shimmering away, disappearing from their sight completely.

"Well..." Scott stared after the demon, looking slightly bewildered. "HE'S certainly something. Nice demon friends you have, Sty-Sty." He added with a small, but cheeky grin.

And even if Stiles was still kind of emotionally fucked right now, she still managed to smile at that. "Yeah. Cooter's awesome, alright."

"I still can't believe his name is 'Cooter'." Scott chuckled, even Derek managed to smirk at that.

Stiles smirked lightly, too.

"I'm gonna head out now. I'm so fucking tired." Scott announced, a wide yawn erupting from him, as if on cue.

Stiles wrinkled her nose. "Ew. Dude... Cover your mouth."

Scott rolled his eyes, smirking cheekily as he reached out to flick the tip of her nose.

"Stop that!" Stiles barked, slapping his hand away. "You ALWAYS do that! It's SO fucking annoying!" She hissed, now glaring up at her so-called bro.

Derek simply smirked in amusement as he silently watched them. Well, watched Stiles. Just Stiles, really. Always Stiles. But that was okay. Shit. It was more than that.

Scott scoffed loudly. "YOU'RE one to talk about being annoying." He stated, wearing a bold grin.

To which, Stiles, again, glared up at the werewolf before reaching forward to punch him in the upper arm. And if she got some sort of evil satisfaction out of his loud and rather girlish squeal, then so fricking what?

...Stiles shut her bedroom door with a loud and tired sigh. "Ugh. FINALLY. I thought he'd NEVER leave." She muttered as she turned to face sourwolf. "Not that I'm NOT grateful for him saving my ass, again -- well, both of you, really." She shrugged lazily. "Thanks, by the way." She added with a sheepish, little grin.

Derek would have smiled at her adorable rambling, like he normal would have, if it weren't for the fact that he could smell the misery and fear still rolling off of her in fricking tidal waves. So, instead, he frowned, ignoring his aching flesh as he slowly crossed the room to stand right in front of her. And for a moment, he simply just stood there, looming over her, secretly scenting her and aching even worse from the inside as he felt it; somehow felt how she felt, just by being so close to her.

Stiles' orbs slowly drifted down to his bloody and torn Henley and the now, almost completely healed wound across his exposed flesh. The corners of her lips twitched up slightly as she slowly reached up a hand, her fingertips ghosting over the red raw, but newly sealed over skin.

Derek's eyes fluttered briefly, his body automatically leaning towards hers. "Stiles," He mumbled, one of his own hands reaching up, his fingers curling under her chin. "I know you're not really okay." And he was only proven right when her gaze averted from his. "I know you're hiding something from me. From everyone."

"I'm not hiding anything." Stiles muttered lowly, almost in resent. Though, she still couldn't look up at him.

Derek rolled his eyes to himself. "It doesn't matter if your heart doesn't so much as stutter when you say that -- I know you better than that now... What're you hiding, Stiles?" His hand slowly slid around to the back of her neck, again, this time, giving it a gentle, reassuring squeeze.

Stiles' orbs drifted back down to his torn Henley. "You need a shirt. You can't go back out in broad daylight like THAT. The neighbours would have a fricking field day. AND my dad would probably flip a shit. I don't really know how one flips a shit, but whatever. Anyway -- ah, right -- you need a shirt. I should find you one. Yeah. That's a good idea. A great idea, in fact." She ranted quietly as pulled away from him altogether.

"Stiles," Derek frowned, again as he watched her scramble clumsily around her room for a moment.

"It's okay. You can borrow one of my dad's. He won't even notice. Trust me." Stiles insisted absentmindedly as she tore open her closet door before rooting around.

Derek sighed tiredly before shuffling over to her. "Stiles,"

"It's fine, Derek, seriously. I've got like, a million." Stiles chuckled lightly.

"Stiles," Derek reached forward, gently grabbing at her wrist to stop her. And fuck, he was barely holding on himself right now. All he could feel right now was dread. And... Just more dread. And some more anger, obvious. Always anger.

Stiles finally stopped her rushed movements, but she was still glaring at her bare feet. "I'm fine." She mumbled quietly.

"No, you're not." Derek replied simply, his voice calm, compared to what he felt inside, right now, anyway. He gripped her wrist a little tighter and gently tugged her back out of her closet to stand in front of him, again.

"Please, Derek," Stiles sighed tiredly, but the werewolf cut her off.

"You're in pain." And as Derek stated that, he tried not to look like HE was the one in pain, here. "I can feel it."

Stiles snorted quietly. "What is that -- part of our freaky connection?" She asked, though, only in half-enthusiastic sarcasm. Seriously, right now, she just felt so fricking tired; so fricking drained. Both emotionally and physically.

"Mostly." Derek mumbled with a lazy shrug.

"Stop smelling me. It's annoying." Stiles shot him a pointed glare, quickly catching on to what he meant.

"I can't help it." Derek replied simply.

"Yeah, right." Stiles shot him a "what-the-fuck-ever!" look. "You've got, like, fricking iron-grip over your self-control."

"Yeah. But it's different with YOU." Derek replied simply, again. And now he was also giving her that look -- that look as if she should have already known all of this. And when she merely rolled her eyes at his response, that was okay -- he understood how anger was her defence. God, he understood that feeling all too fucking well, himself. And so, he went on talking instead. "You're always surrounding me, even when you're nowhere near me. God, help me --" The corners of his lips quirked slightly into a small smile. "You're LITERALLY all I ever damn well think about, Stilinski... Well, you and chocolate-chip pancakes."

Stiles scoffed to cover up the gleeful grin that wanted to break free across her lips and light up her entire face. Pff. Gerard, who? "Pff. You need to get out more, sourwolf."

And at that, Derek did smile, fully, and in amusement. Only Stiles. ALWAYS Stiles. "Stop trying to change the subject." He told her, shooting her a playful glare.

Stiles sighed loudly. "I don't wanna talk." She grumbled, her mood dropping instantly, again. Ugh. Stupid werewolf.

Derek frowned slightly. "But there IS something to talk about?"

Stiles merely nodded limply.

And God, damn, why the fuck did he have to even ask THAT? "Stiles," Derek slowly reached a hand up, his fingers gently grasping her chin to make her look back up at him. "What --" He paused, his body trembling slightly as he fought back against his bubbling anger. "What did he do to you?" He asked, his voice calm, but dangerously low. And when she didn't answer -- "Stiles, what did he do?" He growled slightly, his thoughts now getting a little carried away. "Did he --"

"No." Stiles cut in quickly with a troubled frown. She knew what he was going to say; knew what he was thinking.

And it must have been true, because her heart didn't betray her and neither had her still sweet and pure scent. And what little relief Derek felt, right now, it wasn't enough. No where near enough, in fact. He had to be sure, it wasn't even a fucking option for him. EVER. "Then, WHAT happened?" He repeated, his tone even lower, if that were even fricking possible.

Stiles let out an annoyed huff as she pulled away from the werewolf. "He tried to -- that time he kidnapped me -- when he set me free in the forest -- he tried to..." She mumbled quietly, now glaring back down at her toes. "He tried to make me -- saying how it would wreck Scott if he ruined both his favourite girls. The sick fuck. His own fucking granddaughter." She spat, recalling the memories as she spoke.

Derek wasn't even fucking surprised anymore, not when it came to Gerard. No wonder Kate had been so fucking evil. Ugh. "Did he hurt you?" And seriously, how was he even still standing here, when all he wanted to do right now was go find Gerard and tear him apart, limb by fucking limb, until there was nothing left to put back together.

Stiles scoffed loudly, again. "Uh, yeah. Only A LOT." She shot the Alpha another pointed glare.

Derek let out a frustrated huff, now glaring back at her, though, only half-heartedly. "You know what I mean." He muttered.

"No." Stiles replied as she scoffed again. "I kicked him in the nut sack and then ran off to find my dad." She explained simply with a casual shrug.

And damn, Stilinski. Even now, with the way he felt, the way he could both feel and scent his mate and with the knowledge he now knew. Even NOW, Derek still managed to smile in amusement.

Stiles stared curiously back up at him, a small smile tugging at the corners of her own lips. "What?"

Derek simply grinned as he settled a hand on the back of her neck, slowly pulling her closer to him. "That's my girl."


	90. Chapter 90

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Now, mush!"

"Kudos, Ethan. This place is fucking awesome." Allison chirped, a look of excitement lighting up her pretty face as she sipped at her glass of vodka and orange juice.

"Yeah." Scott nodded in agreement as he sipped at his second beer. "How'd you keep finding these clubs?" He asked, looking slightly intrigued.

Ethan grinned as he chugged down the rest of his fourth beer. "I'm awesome -- THAT'S how." He replied, as if it were that simple. Which apparently, it was.

"And who knew that Beacon Hills had a nightlife that DIDN'T involve violence and death?" Stiles chimed in lightheartedly, sipping on her own second beer.

Scott, Allison and Danny chuckled at that, Ethan's grin also widening in amusement.

"So, where's Tweedledum and the evil Queen of Hearts at tonight?" Stiles asked curiously, while arching an expectant brow.

Ethan smirked at the little nickname for his brother. At least he got to be Tweedledee. So that was something. Something funny. Trust Stilinski. "They're staying in tonight to snuggle and watch The Notebook, again." He explained with a light snigger.

Scott wrinkled his nose, whereas both his girls burst out laughing upon hearing that.

"What about Derek?" Ethan asked, smirking smugly. "Where's HE at tonight?" He asked, arching a brow and looking way too interested for the human's liking.

Stiles rolled her eyes, having been used to it by now. Seriously, how couldn't she be with Lydia and Allison constantly badgering her for details of her fricking sex life. Or lack of, therefore. Well, sort of, anyway. "In his little werewolf den. Snoring his little werewolf head off." She replied simply, taking another sip from her beer bottle. Although, now she had to fight back the urge to smile at the mere thought of sourwolf sprawled across his bed, face down, snoring softly. Which was exactly the way she had discovered him, this afternoon, after school. And it was exactly the way she had left him.

Ethan scoffed loudly, looking most displeased. "What IS he, 80 years old? It's only," He paused, grabbing his phone from his pocket to check the time, his eyes then widening in utter horror. "9:30!?" He exclaimed before glaring over at her. "WHAT the hell IS his problem!?"

While Scott, Allison and Danny fought back their laughter, Stiles simply glared back at the Alpha twin in response.

"Seriously, Stilinski," Ethan shook his head in dismay as he shoved his phone back into his pocket. "You're dating a frigging geriatric. I hope you realise this. But as long as you're happy with that, I guess."

"Hey!" Stiles barked defensively. "He had a rough night last night." She retorted snootily.

"Pff. Please. He's a werewolf. AND an Alpha." Ethan waved a hand of dismissal, clearly not convinced.

"Well, maybe he just knows that he's not cool enough to hang out with us. Especially in a place like this." Scott stated with a large, teasing grin.

"Or YOUNG enough..." Danny piped up with a shrug and a small smirk.

Stiles shifted her glare onto the other human. "Don't YOU fricking start, as well!" She snipped, shooting him a warning look.

Danny's smirk only widened as he went back to quietly sipping away at his margarita. And yeah, he wasn't usually one for the stereotypical homosexual drink -- but Ethan was right; this shit was fucking tasty as Hell!

"Guys, leave her alone now." Allison piped up, shooting the three males a warning look.

Stiles scoffed loudly. "You're just as bad!" She accused, now glaring over at the huntress. "In fact, second to Red, you're the fricking worst!"

Allison scoffed back, a hand coming up to her rest over her chest as she shot the older girl an offended look. "I don't what you're talking about." She stated, FAR too innocently and while wearing that damn skilled poker face of hers. Ugh.

"Pff!" Stiles huffed.

Allison grinned, unable to help herself any longer.

Scott wrinkled his nose. "I don't even wanna know." He shook his head. "EVER." He added that last part with a stern expression, thrown towards both the girls.

"And you NEVER will." Stiles concluded with a confirming nod. "EVER." She added that last part, throwing the same stern expression towards the huntress, WHILE ignoring her flaming cheeks.

Allison grinned sweetly. "I promised -- didn't I?"

Stiles narrowed her eyes slightly, again. "Uh-huh..." She grumbled, still not quite believing her...

...Derek wasn't quite fully awake yet. But he was at least awake enough to know that he was now laying on his back instead. And he was also awake enough to sense the familiar warmth surrounding. He shifted slightly, frowning curiously as he slowly cracked his eyes open.

"Sorry." Cora mumbled as she wrapped an arm around his waist. "I didn't mean to wake you."

"It's fine." Derek rasped, then clearly his throat quietly. "What's wrong?" He asked, his frown softening.

"Nightmare. Same as always. It's been a while." Cora replied simply, resting her head on his stomach and curling her entire body around his.

Derek's frown deepened. He knew which nightmare she was referring to. He knew, because he still had them sometimes, too. So instead of talking, he simply wrapped an arm around the back of her shoulder, pulling her closer for comfort.

"Where's uncle Peter?" Cora asked. Though, it was mainly to fill some of the silence.

"Don't know." Derek replied simply. "Don't care."

Cora smiled slightly in amusement.

"Where's Isaac?" Derek asked.

"Working. He got a new job at some bar up town." Cora explained simply.

Derek grunted quietly in acknowledgement. "So, are you two together now?" He asked lightly, knowing that she wasn't much of a talker. But that was okay. Neither was he. They were a lot alike in that way -- only saying or doing something if and when they thought it mattered enough. And of course, he was interested in knowing. And also maybe slightly weirded out. But he knew Isaac was a good kid and that he would protect and love his baby sister -- just as Derek did with Stiles.

"I don't really know. We're not dating or anything like that." Cora explained calmly, honestly.

"But you like him." And it wasn't a question. In fact, Derek was trying real hard not to laugh right now. He didn't want to embarrass her or piss her off, but it really was kind of adorable. Especially seeing as how Cora never liked anyone, in anyway. 'Huh. She really is a lot like me in that way.' He thought, smiling fondly to himself.

Cora rolled her eyes to herself, just knowing he was probably smiling. "I guess."

And at that, Derek chuckled lightly in amusement.

"Ugh. Screw you. I'm going back to my own bed." Cora grumbled as she hauled herself up.

Derek rolled his eyes, wearing a smug smirk as he reached out and grabbed a hold of her wrist. He pulled her back down, chuckling in amusement again when she stumbled back a little less than gracefully and then shot him a glare for her little mishap.

Cora huffed in annoyance as she tried to pull her wrist from his hand. She growled quietly, glaring down at him when his grip didn't even flinch.

"Alpha -- remember?" Derek smirked smugly back up at her.

"Douchebag -- remember?" Cora countered with a small smirk of her own.

Derek's smirk only widened. "Astronaut -- remember?"

To which, Cora glare darkly back down at him before letting out a snarl and then lunging straight for him...

...Stiles' eyes widened in horror. "Oh, my God! Derek!" Her gaze flitted across his face and bare arms in that stupid (sexy) white wifebeater (that he totally rocked in a totally heterosexual, muscly, werewolf way) revealing the minor bruises and cuts spread variously over his flesh, though, already beginning to heal. "What the fuck happened!?"

Derek smiled sheepishly just as his baby sister same sauntering down the stairs.

"Oh, my God! Cora!" Stiles' eyes widened even further as she took in the small cuts and bruises scattered across the she wolf's face and chest. "What --" She paused, her orbs darting back and forth between the siblings before the realisation finally swept over her. "Oh, for crying out loud! Not again! SERIOUSLY, children -- puppies!?" She hissed, narrowing her orbs at the both of them. "I thought something bad had happened!"

Cora scoffed as she made her way towards the elevator. "HE started it."

Stiles merely rolled her eyes. Though, she also shook her head in dismay to ignore the fact that she wanted to burst out laughing.

"I did NOT." Derek cut in, throwing a glare to his sister. "SHE attacked ME first." He told his mate, quickly trying to justify himself.

And at that, Stiles chuckled loudly in amusement. 'Seriously -- could he be any more adorable right now... Or ever... Yes. Of course he could... Ugh.'

Cora scoffed, again as she hauled the metal partition effortlessly across with one hand. "Whatever. Later, DER-BEAR." She smirked smugly back at him, her smirk only widening when Stiles laughed loudly.

Derek shot his mate a glare before shooting his sister one last glare. "I hate you." He grunted.

"Awh, I hate you, bitch." Cora chirped with a chuckle as she finally disappeared into the elevator.

Stiles grinned in amusement as she watched the Alpha's jaw tighten, a look of annoyance settling over his face as he glared after his sister. "Cute nickname." She commented all too innocently.

Derek turned to her, narrowing his eyes. "I will NEVER forgive you for that." He muttered with a slight sulk.

'Okay... He sulks... Sourwolf actually sulks... So... He just got even more adorable... Ugh.' Stiles felt her grin automatically widen. "I think I can live with that." Especially if it meant more sourwolf adorableness. 'Hell, fucking yes!'

Derek's eyes narrowed a little further as he moved to stand in front of her. "Such a mean, little human." He mumbled, his hand slipping up to rest lightly on either side of her waist.

'God, he's fucking pouting now, too!?' Stiles gulped silently, trying to ignore her racing heart at such a simple, light touch. 'Jeez. No wonder he made me fricking squirt! God, damn...' And yep, too late -- she noticed his nose twitch slightly. Her cheeks flushed then, remembering that he could fricking smell her arousal! Ugh! No fair! "I'm not little." She mumbled. And yeah, it was a pathetic excuse for a response. She knew that. But so frigging what? It wasn't even her stupid fault. Kind of.

Derek chuckled at that, while some-fucking-how ignoring the heavy, enticing scent lingering around him now. "Come on," He slipped his hands reluctantly from her waist a grabbed one of her hands in his one of his own instead. "I've got a surprise for you."

"Another surprise?" Stiles arched a brow, shooting him a look somewhere between curiosity and mock dread.

Derek rolled his eyes, but couldn't help smirking in amusement, again. "Again; you'll like this one." He stated with a twinkle of mischief in his expression.

Stiles narrowed her eyes, but also couldn't help smirking slightly in amusement, again. "I better had."

"Bossy." Derek's smirk widened as he gently dragged her towards the table, by the large loft window.

"Yep." Stiles grinned. "Now, mush!"

To which, predictable, Derek threw her another not so impressed glare and to which, Stiles really couldn't help laughing at in response.


	91. Chapter 91

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "YOUR kinda fun or the REAL kinda fun?"

Derek let his hand slip slowly from hers as they stopped by the table. He reached for the small, white envelope sitting on top of a pile of old and worn out looking books on the table. With a small smile lingering across his lips, he turned back to her, holding the envelope out for her to take.

Stiles arched a brow, her curious gaze flitting between his and the envelope in his hand. "What's this?" She asked lightly as she reached out and took it from him. And okay, it wasn't her fault if this wasn't exactly the kind of surprise she was expecting. But those dirty thoughts of hers were now being shoved to one side as she glanced curiously back at the envelope in her hand.

"It's a birthday gift." Derek replied simply.

Stiles' eyes then widened slightly in realisation. "Holy crap! How the heck did I forget about that!?" She retorted, looking completely astonished with herself.

Derek smirked in amusement. "Well, you've had a lot on your mind lately." He pointed out.

And Stiles didn't actually know if he was referring to the both of them or the fucked up, but also awesome things that had been happening to her lately. But that was okay. She could simply just wonder. Because there was no fricking way she was going to outright ask him. No, no. That would just be another reason for him to show off that stupid (sexy) smug smirk of his.

And obviously, Derek took her silence for something else entirely, because now he looked a little worried, or maybe it was nervous. "Your birthday IS this Friday coming up -- right?" He really fucking hoped so, because fuck, that would be so embarrassing.

Stiles noticed the expression on his face as she glanced back up at him. "Yeah." She smiled and nodded, both to answer and reassure him.

"Good." Derek felt relief wash over him as he nodded in acknowledgement. "Now, open it." He told her, glancing nervously back to the white envelope still in her hand.

Stiles smirked smugly. "And NOW who's bossy, huh?"

Derek rolled his eyes, but couldn't help smirking a little, too. "I just wanna know if you like it. So just... Hurry up."

Stiles huffed dramatically, as if he were asking her for the fricking moon. "Fine. Don't freak out on me." She widened her eyes for emphasis, shooting him a mocking grin when he only shot her a rather half-hearted glare. She chuckled in amusement before finally turning the envelope over and lifting the already open flap.

Derek silently watched her, his entire body buzzing with nervousness right now.

Stiles pulled out a two slips of paper, her eyes widening instantly upon reading them. "Holy shit..." She inhaled sharply, her eyes widening even more as she glanced back up at him. "You got me tickets to go see Blink-18-fucking-2!?"

Derek smiled rather sheepishly and nodded. "So... You like DO like it, then?" He asked slowly, eyeing her reaction very carefully

"Oh, my fucking God! YES! I LOVE it! Are you even for real right now!? This is the best birthday gift, EVER!" Stiles exclaimed, her eyes still widened in amazement. "HOW the FUCK did you even know about them!?" She asked, staring at him like he had just grown a second head.

"I MAY have asked Scott, again." Derek stated simply, a nervous smile still plastered to his lips.

And that was enough for Stiles as she suddenly launched herself straight at him. She wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly as she buried her face into his chest. "Thank you, sourwolf." She mumbled softly, smiling against him.

Derek wrapped his arms around the back of her shoulders, pulling her as close as fricking possible. "Your welcome." He leant down to kiss the top of her head and smiled to himself. "I thought you'd probably wanna spend your actual birthday with your dad and your friends, so I booked the tickets for the Saturday instead."

Stiles smiled brightly as she pulled her head back to look up at him. "You think of everything. You are officially awesome." She told him, her bright orbs twinkling gleefully. "And we're gonna have an awesome time."

To which, Derek arched a brow, looking a little surprised. "Oh."

"What?" Stiles frowned, the twinkle slowly vanishing from her orbs  
"I just, I thought you'd probably wanna go with Scott. Or one of the girls." Derek stated with a shrug.

"Pff. Lydia would rather die, Allison would rather bang Scott, and Scott is so fricking annoying at gigs, that I'D rather die." Stiles explained, shooting him a "no fucking way!" look.

Derek simply grinned in amusement.

"Besides," Stiles frowned slightly, again. "I'd rather go with you. And it seems only fair, seeing as you're the one who bought the tickets... It can be our third date." She grinned cheekily up at him.

Derek smirked again, and this time, only to hide the fact that he was trying really hard not to just sweep her off her feet right now, throw her over his shoulder and march them straight up to his bed. REALLY frigging... HARD.

"I mean, unless, you don't wanna go?" Stiles added, now looking a little nervous, too.

"I'll go." Derek agreed simply.

Stiles arched a brow, looking slightly surprised. "Really?"

Derek nodded, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "If you wish it."

"'If I wish it'?" Stiles' brow rose further, a look of amusement now crossing her face. "You've watched Peter Pan?" And now she was just grinning widely, like a complete fool. "Y'know, that's a recent movie, right?" She added, shooting him a pointed look.

Derek rolled his eyes, but still couldn't help smiling slightly. "Yeah. Cora made me watch it."

"Awh." Stiles' grin widened even more, if that were even possible. "Cora's a big softie underneath all that glaring... Kinda like her big bro."

Derek shot her a playful, but pointed glare in response as he slid his hands down her back and around to rest lightly on her hips. "So, what're your plans for your actual birthday?" He asked, looking genuinely interested as he glanced intriguingly down at her.

Stiles sighed lightly and shrugged. "I dunno, really. But probably the same as always -- dad books the day off of work, takes me shopping and feeds me vast amounts of sugary goodness before I then get dragged out by Scott in the evening." She explained, while wearing a small, but fond smile.

"Sounds like fun." Derek stated simply, though, still wearing a small smile.

"YOUR kind of fun or the REAL kind of fun?" Stiles countered with a smug smirk.

Derek narrowed his eyes slightly. "MY kind of fun?"

Stiles' smirk only widened. "Yeah." She nodded. "Y'know; violence, chaos, death..." She aired casually, trailing purposefully off.

Derek rolled his eyes, again, but also couldn't help smirking lightly amusement at her stupid, witty (cute, sexy) banter. Ugh. "That's NOT my kind of fun, at all." He mumbled, his smirk slowly growing as his hands slipped around to give her ass a gentle squeeze.

"Uh-huh... I guess I should have known that." Stiles mumbled back as he lowered his head beside hers, and then lowered his mouth to the crook of her neck.

Derek huffed out a quiet laugh at her words before reaching forward, again and nipping gently at the base her throat. He gave her ass another gentle squeeze, then sliding his hands down to the back of her thighs and lifting her up, against him.

Stiles instantly wrapped her legs around his waist, her arms wrapping loosely around his neck. "Wait." She whispered, pulling back a little.

Derek shot her a confused look.

Stiles quickly slipped the tickets back into the envelope behind his back before gently tossing them back onto the table. She then pulled back to look at him and nodded. "Okay. Go." She chirped with a grin, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck.

Derek smirked, clearly amused. And when she simply rolled her eyes before leaning down to kiss him, he really couldn't help chuckling against her lips...

...Peter's eyes widened in bewilderment as he stared back at the young teenage girl standing in front of him. He had only come to this quiet downtown bar to get away from all the chaos for a while. And then, literally out of nowhere, the bluest, most beautiful pair of eyes appeared right in front of him.

"Um," Malia paused, glancing nervously back at the man standing before her. "Are you Peter Hale?"

Peter gulped silently as he placed his empty glass of brandy back onto the bar before turning to fully face her. "Yes." He nodded. "Who are you?" He asked, his voice calm, pleasant, even. And of course he damn well knew who she was. But he didn't really know what the hell was going on right now.

"My name's Malia Tate."

Peter nodded in acknowledgement. "You're friends with Scott and Stiles."

Malia nodded, offering a small, but still rather nervous smile. "They helped me get my life back together."

Again, Peter simply nodded to that. And Hell, he couldn't remember the last time he had been rendered completely speechless. Until now, it seemed. "Uh, what is it that you want?" He asked. And still, he kept his tone pleasant, soft, even. Because he didn't want to hurt her or turn her away. God, damn it, his heart fucking ached right now. How is it that he could miss something that he never even remembered -- never even knew existed? And in that moment, he really hated Talia for this. Even if he still missed her, terribly.

"To be honest, I don't really know." Malia offered another small smile as she shifted awkwardly on her spot. "Stiles actually used to pester me about coming to see you, but I guess she gave up in the end..." She gulped silently, gazing hopelessly up at him, eyes blue on blue. "Is it true?" She mumbled, her throat clenching painfully. "Are you my real father?"


	92. Chapter 92

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You HAVE to break out."

Stiles groaned quietly at the sound of her stupid alarm clock blaring loudly beside her head. She sleepily rolled over in her bed, batting the thing blindly with one arm out of the covers until the sound finally stopped. She sighed tiredly, slowly rolling onto her back, her eyes widening in shock at the familiar face they quickly landed on. She shrieked loudly in shock as she spotted the Alpha's tall, dark figure standing in the darkness of her room at the bottom of her bed. She quickly sat up, taking a few deep breaths to calm herself down before glaring over at the werewolf, even if she couldn't see his face properly. "Derek! You ass!" She snipped with a huff.

Derek said nothing, did... Nothing.

Stiles frowned slightly in confusion. "Derek?" She glanced briefly at her alarm clock, her frown deepening even more as it read: 10:30A.M, her gaze then flickering back to the darkness. "Hey, why the hell's it still dark outside?" She asked, glancing over to her bedroom window.

Again, Derek didn't respond, or make any movement at all.

Stiles' frown only deepened then, and now she was beginning to get a little freaked out. "Derek?" She called out again, this time a little firmer. And again, when he didn't respond, her frown deepened even more as she finally pulled the covers away.

"Stiles,"

Stiles halted all her movements when the werewolf finally spoke up. His voice sounded hoarse and exhausted, though, he still hadn't moved an inch. Well, from what she could see in the darkness, anyway.

"Stiles," Derek croaked, his figure slightly shaking now. "You... You have to..."

"You HAVE to break out."

Stiles let out another shocked shriek as another familiar voice piped up. Her eyes skidded over to the far left corner of her room, by her computer desk. "Allison!?" Her eyes now widened in confusion. "What're YOU doing here?" She asked, squinting at the familiar figure.

"You HAVE to break out, Stiles... You HAVE to..." Allison repeated, sounding more firm, and slightly desperate.

"Okay... WHAT the fuck is going on here?" Stiles asked, staring between the two figures at an utter loss now.

"Oh, god -- no..." Allison whispered, sounding rather terrified now. "Stiles --"

Stiles' eyes widened, yet again, though, this time in utter horror as Gerard's face appeared all too fricking clearly at the foot of her bed. "What the FUCK!?" She breathed heavily. And now she was torn between reaching out for Derek -- who simply just continued to stand there beside the crazy, old man -- and backing the fuck away completely.

Gerard merely grinned at her, not taking his eyes off of her as he reached behind his back with his right hand.

"Stop. Stop, PLEASE... Just stop..." Allison pleaded quietly, cowering in fright in the background, barely audible now.

Stiles' eyes widened even further as the old man pulled out a large butcher's knife -- probably the same fricking one he had already used on sourwolf. "Don't..." She trailed off, her breath caught in her throat.

Gerard's grin widened before he finally spoke up. "Happy birthday, Gamora..." He sneered before grabbing the werewolf's throat with his free hand and instantly stabbing him through the chest, straight through to the beast's heart, grinning maliciously at her as the Alpha let out a loud and pained roar.

"DEREK!" Stiles screamed at the top of her lungs, though, she was still unable to move a stupid fucking muscle. "HELP HIM! PLEASE!" She yelled desperately over to the huntress -- who merely continued to cower and sob quietly in the corner.

"Stiles..." Derek whispered with one last breath.

"Stiles, you HAVE to break out..." Allison mumbled quietly, her voice still quivering slightly.

But Stiles was still frozen; numb, her eyes widened as she stared helplessly back at him, her heart racing painfully fast inside of her aching chest.

Gerard let out a low cackle, a wicked smirk smeared across his now blood-splattered face; Derek's blood. "Surprise, my darling."

Something inside of Stiles finally snapped, the anger and hurt exploding suddenly as she let out a loud scream before leaping out of her bed.

"Stiles... YOU HAVE TO WAKE UP!" Allison suddenly screamed at the top of her lungs, her voice filled with terror.

Stiles' eyes widened, again, as Gerard tossed the Alpha's lifeless body aside to grab her roughly by the shoulders. She began to struggle violently against him, screaming as she felt the hot tears streaming down her flushed cheeks.

"STILES! STILES! WAKE UP!"

Stiles blinked rapidly in confusion at the familiar sound of her father's voice. She glanced back up to Gerard, only to find her father's terrified face staring back down at her. She seized all of her movements instantly, staring up at him with wide, wild and confused orbs. "D-dad!?" She choked out, barely keeping a loud, and relieved sob from escaping as she realised that none of what she just saw was really real.

John took a deep breath before forcing himself to respond. "Are you okay? What the hell happened? You're having those nightmares, again, are you? You're not gonna start sleepwalking, again, are you?" And okay, he couldn't stop himself, he was worried about his daughter, of course. But then again, he always worried about her. He then quickly reached forward, embracing her tightly for a few moments before pulling away. "You've seriously gotta stop doing this to me, kiddo. My heart can't take much more of it." He told her, shooting her a pointed, yet, still concerned look.

"I'm sorry." Stiles mumbled.

John frowned deeply. "Don't apologise. It's not your fault." He told her, his voice now soft and slightly defeated. "Do you wanna talk about it?" He asked.

"No. It's fine." Stiles replied, almost automatically. She knew there was no fricking way she would be able to tell him about Gerard. EVER.

"You sure?" John narrowed his eyes a little, clearly not believing her. Though, he didn't want to push her. Too much, anyway. He WAS her father, after all. He needed answers, if his daughter was in any kind of trouble. And he could tell there was something that she wasn't telling him. But for now, he would let it go. Although, only to see if she would maybe come to him in the end anyway. He hoped she would, at least.

Stiles nodded, forcing a small, but reassuring smile. "I'm sure."

John sighed, but nodded, accepting her answer -- again, for now, anyway. "Well, it's 10:30, so get your lazy ass up. Just 'cause I let you and your friends ditch school for the day, doesn't mean you all get to mooch around." He shot her a small, but fond smile.

Stiles' gaze snapped over to her alarm clock, her heart racing slightly as it indeed, read: 10:30A.M.

"Hey," John frowned in concerned, once again. "You can talk to me. You know that, right?"

Stiles quickly turned her gaze back to his, forcing herself to calm the fuck down and even managing another small, but slightly brighter smile. "Really, dad. I'm fine now. It was just a bad dream." She gulped silently. 'Yeah... A really, REALLY fricking bad dream...'

John simply nodded, though, he still looked a little troubled. "If you say so."

Stiles simply continued to smile brightly back at him.

And after a few moments, John couldn't help breaking out into a smile, too. He chuckled lightly, grabbing her and pulling her in for another tight embrace. "Happy birthday, kid."

'Yeah...' Stiles' smile faltered slightly as she hugged her father tightly back. 'Happy birthday to me...'

...When her father had gone downstairs to the kitchen, Stiles instantly grabbed her phone from her nightstand and dialled the first number on her contacts list. The line answered on the second ring and before she could even --

"Happy birthday, Stiles!"

And even if Stiles was still a little freaked out right now, she couldn't help smiling and even chuckling lightly at the huntress' infectious personality. Even down the fricking phone. Which never ceased to amaze Stiles. "Hey, Allison. And thanks." She replied gratefully, of course, even if she really wasn't feeling much into celebrating anything right now. And of course, hearing her ever-cheery voice made Stiles feel a little better, too.

"You're still coming out with us tonight, right? You're not calling me right now to bail on us, are you?" Allison asked, suddenly sounding rather crushed and panicked at the same time.

'Yes.' Stiles frowned. "No, no. Don't worry. I'll be there." Ugh. Why was she such a fricking people pleaser? It so wasn't fair!

"Thank, God!" Allison breathed out a huge sigh of relief, then returning to her usual chirpy self. "Derek's coming with us, too, right?"

Stiles rolled her eyes, unable to help smirking in amusement. She could just imagine the silly brunette grinning that pretty, evil smile of hers. "Yes. Obviously."

And predictably, Allison let out a (thankfully short) squeal of excitement. "Seriously, we're all gonna have a fricking blast! I won't let you regret it! I won't let Derek regret it, either! Though, mostly you, 'cause it's YOUR birthday, obviously."

Stiles chuckled lightly in amusement again at the younger girl's adorable ranting. "Okay, Allison, I'm gonna hang up on you now..."

"Ugh! Fine! Be that way!" Allison huffed.

And again, Stiles couldn't help smirking as she imagined the brunette now sulking to herself. "GOODBYE, Allison..."

"See ya tonight, slut!" Allison giggled wickedly, then quickly hanging up first instead.

Stiles pulled her phone away from her ear, glaring briefly at it before letting out an annoyed huff. "Bitch..."

...Stiles had called Derek right after she had called Allison, and he hadn't answered her. So, she waited a few minutes before trying again, and again, he didn't answer. This time, as she waited, she quickly padded down to her bathroom to complete her morning rituals before hurrying back to her room. She forced herself to wait a few more minutes as she pulled off her pyjamas, pulling on a pair of dark blue jeans, along with her battered, yellow Converse, and of course, her favourite, over-sized red jumper. And then finally, she tried again, and again, the werewolf didn't answer. And now, she was beginning to get a little worried.

"Hey," John suddenly appeared in her open bedroom doorway, sporting a casual gray t-shirt and a pair of dark blue jeans, rather than his usual Sheriff's uniform. "You okay?"

Stiles forced another smile and nodded as she shoved her phone into her pocket. "I'm good. Just hungry." She added with a small grin.

John chuckled lightly and nodded. "Where'd you wanna go? Anywhere you like."

Stiles' grin widened a little. "Can we just go to Scott's and have Melissa whip us up some Batman-shaped pancakes?" She asked, her eyes twinkling with excitement.

John smirked. "You already got Scott to ask her, didn't you?" And it wasn't really a question, and he didn't really need any confirmation.

"Ah, you know me too well, old-timer." Stiles smirked back.

John narrowed his eyes at her. "Watch your mouth." He all, but grumbled out...

...As she sat in the passenger's seat of her father's patrol car, with him driving over to the McCall household, Stiles jumped when she suddenly felt her phone vibrating silently in her pocket.

John arched a brow, clearly still concerned from this morning, but kept his mouth shut. For now, anyway.

Completely oblivious to anything else right now, Stiles instantly grabbed her phone out of her pocket, a wave of relief washing over her as she saw that it was a text message from Derek.

From Sourwolf --  
'Hey, sorry I missed your calls. I was catching up on my sleep. Need to be awake for tonight. ;)  
And Stiles, happy birthday. :)'

And obviously, Stiles really couldn't help smiling at that last part. Although, she then registered the part just before that and her heart instantly seemed to flutter.

"Going by the dreamy look on your face -- I'm guessing that's Derek." John piped up, motioning towards the phone in her hands.

"What!?" Stiles almost spluttered over her words. Well, just the one word, anyway.

John smirked smugly as he turned his focus back to road ahead. "You're both PAINFULLY obvious sometimes."

Stiles merely glared at her so-called father. Ugh.

And predictably, John merely chuckled in amusement to himself.

And finally, Stiles used his distraction of the road to quickly type her reply to werewolf before instantly sending it.

To Sourwolf --  
'Thank you. :)  
Listen, I'm on my way to Scott's for some breakfast with our parents. But can I see you after that?'

And not all that surprisingly, but still somehow making Stiles heart flutter again, this time, he replied in a matter of a couple of minutes.

From Sourwolf --  
'Yeah, sure.  
Are you okay?  
Is something wrong?  
I feel like something is wrong...'

And even though Stiles wanted to frown at his response, she found herself smiling softly.

To Sourwolf --  
'No, nothing's wrong. And yes, I'm okay.  
I just wanna see you, before tonight. :)'


	93. Chapter 93

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "All I have is a bunch of unstable magical powers from Coo-Coo Land that stem from my own mental fricking illness issues!"

"Happy birthday, bro!" Scott chimed gleefully after nearly tearing his front door open in his unattainable excitement. He then instantly threw himself forward to embrace her tightly.

"T-thanks." Stiles wheezed out, barely managing to lift her own arms up to give him a pat on the back. "Dude... Can't breathe... Dying..." She added quickly.

"Crap. Sorry." Scott hissed, quickly pulling away from her altogether.

John chuckled to himself as he simply stood, watching the infamous -- trouble-making -- duo.

"Morning, John." Scott gave the Sheriff his usual curt nod.

"Morning, Scott." John nodded back in acknowledgement. "So, you gonna let us in or what?" He then asked, arching a pointed brow at the teen.

"Right. Yeah. Sorry. Come on in." Scott quickly shuffled back to the open doorway, motioning for them both to follow.

John simply shook his head, still smirking slightly in amusement as he slowly followed the teenagers into the house. He closed the front door quietly behind him, shedding him jacket and hanging it up in the hallway before following the teens down the hallway and into the kitchen, where Melissa was stood at the stove, already flipping those delicious pancakes of hers.

"Ah, good morning, Stilinski's." Melissa chimed brightly, throwing them both a smile over her shoulder. "And a very happy birthday to Stiles."

"Thanks, Melissa." Stiles chirped, shooting her a bright and grateful smile in return.

"Morning, all." John nodded, noticing the others sat at the table already. "Isaac." He gave a nod of acknowledgement to the younger boy.

"Morning, Sheriff." Isaac gave a curt nod and a polite smile in return.

"Ah, call me 'John'." He waved a lazy hand as he took a seat to the left of his daughter.

Isaac nodded, his smile widening slightly. "Morning, John."

John merely smirked in amusement. 'Great. Another smartass.' Though, obviously, no one could ever compete with his daughter. Ugh. Seriously. The kid didn't know when to shut up. And he only had himself to blame for that. Again; ugh.

"Need any help?" Stiles piped up.

"Yes. But it's YOUR birthday." Melissa replied before shooting her son a pointed look.

Scott huffed lightly, but otherwise got the hint before hauling himself back out of his chair. "What'd you need?"

"Set the glasses on the table, make sure everyone has a drink and then get the plates ready for me." Melissa ordered without even looking up from the frying pan in her hand.

Scott simply nodded, shuffling off to do as he was told.

To which, Stiles and Isaac both shared an amused smirk at their "whipped" Alpha. Pff, Alpha. Ha! Not when Mama McCall was in the house, that was for fricking sure...

...Stiles and John both groaned as they plopped down on the couch beside one another, their stomachs now full to the fricking brim.

"Holy cow..." Stiles mumbled, panting slightly as she leaned back in her seat to give her stomach some more room to fricking breathe.

"Ugh. I know..." John mumbled, copying her actions, a hand patting his stuffed stomach through his shirt.

"I feel... So fat... SO fat..." Isaac -- already sprawled out across the smaller couch -- scowled to himself as he glared down at his own stomach.

"Yeah... Me, too..." Scott breathed, nodding in agreement from his spot, laying flat on his back on the floor beside Isaac.

"Okay..." Melissa -- from her station at the dining room table, hunched over on the one the chairs -- piped up finally, sounding a little regretful, to say the very least. "I MAY have overdone it THIS time..." She admitted.

To which, the others all slowly, but simultaneously turned their heads towards her to shoot her a glare...

...A little past lunchtime and things in the McCall household were holding up a lot better. Especially after lazy out in front of the television for an hour or so.

"Who wants presents!?" Melissa chimed, standing in the living room archway with a large, white box, delicately wrapped and topped off with a red string and bow.

"Oh! I do!" Stiles chimed back with a cheeky grin. And who wouldn't perk up at a question like that? No one. Duh.

Melissa grinned widely back as she shuffled closer, placing the box on top of the coffee table. "Happy birthday, birthday girl!"

"Well, I love the box -- so, we're already off to a good start here." Stiles chirped.

"Shut up and open it." Melissa ordered, shooting the teen (her practically fricking adopted daughter) a playful glare.

"Yes, ma'am!" Stiles replied, giving a mock salute with her two fingers. She shuffled forward in her seat, carefully pulling at the strings before lifting the lid and taking a peak inside. "Oh, my God!" She shrieked, quickly reaching inside when she realised what she was looking at. "Oh, my God!" She shrieked again, her widened eyes darting from the gray wolf onesie in her grasp and back up to her best friend's mother (her practically fricking adoptive mother).

Melissa grinned, while also noticing John shaking his head in both dismay and amusement. "I take it that you like it?"

"LIKE it!?" Stiles exclaimed. "Pff! I LOVE it!"

"Well, I'm glad, 'cause it wasn't fricking easy to find." Melissa stated, shooting her another playful glare.

Stiles merely beamed up at her, the onesie still in her trembling, excited clutches. "You rock, M! SO hard!"

Melissa simply chuckled in amusement.

"For crying out loud." Scott muttered, shaking his head and sighing loudly, like he was so hard fricking done by. Ugh.

"Screw YOU, dude!" Stiles narrowed her eyes at him, knowing where he was going with this. Again. Ugh. "Onesies are awesome! And I'll have none of your jive talk about them!"

Scott merely scoffed, but kept his mouth shut.

"ANYWAY," Isaac piped up, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small white envelope. "Happy birthday, Stiles." He shot her a bright smile as he held it out to her.

"Thanks, girl-curls." Stiles chirped, shooting him a fond smile as she took it from him.

"Uh, it's just a card and some money." Isaac mumbled, blushing slightly and looking rather embarrassed. "I'm kinda broke and I didn't really know what to get you, so --"

"Isaac, dude," Stiles smiled reassuringly. "It's cool." She smirked in amusement when she pulled the card out to see a photo of a cute, curly-haired puppy on the front of it. "Thanks. It's adorable." She grinned.

"Yeah, well, you always call me a curly-headed 'F' word." Isaac shot her a playful, but pointed glare.

John arched a brow, glancing at his daughter now.

Stiles smiled sheepishly at her father in return. "Well, he is..." She mumbled back her argument in defiance.

John merely rolled his eyes, though, he couldn't help smirking a little in amusement.

"Okay, my turn now!" Scott piped excitedly as he dug into his back pocket. "Here." He pulled out a small slip of paper, grinning as he handed it over.

Stiles took the paper curiously, her eyes widening, again. "No way!" She glanced back up to her best fricking friend forever. "A year's free supply of curly fries!?"

Scott's grin widened. "Yep -- from any diner in any U.S. state." He nodded. "I won it on the radio -- for you, of course."

"Are you kidding me right now? Ugh." John muttered, shaking his head in dismay.

"Scott! What the heck kinda birthday present is THAT!?" Melissa snapped, now glaring over at her son. 'Idiot!'

Isaac merely sat back in silence, willing himself not to show any amusement in that moment.

And now, Scott looked rather helpless as he stared back at his angry mother. "B-but --"

"No! I love it! Seriously!" Stiles cut in, grinning widely and bouncing in her seat. "See? THIS is why you're my bro for life, dude."

"Ugh." Both Melissa and John mumbled.

And this time, Isaac couldn't help chuckling slightly. "All it takes is some free curly fries? Damn, Stilinski, you're an easy date."

"Yeah." Scott snorted. "I wonder if Derek knows that."

And even John had to join in with the others laughing at that. Along with the priceless look on his daughter's face, of course.

Stiles glared back at each and every one of them in return before responding to that. "I hate you... ALL of you..."

...Derek's lips quickly tugged into a smile as soon as his eyes landed on hers. "Hey." He rose from the couch and sauntered slowly over to her just as she entered the room, finally. Ugh. It had only been a few hours since he had seen her last and it felt like fucking forever. Was he a damn teenager again now?

"Hey." Stiles quickly pulled herself together, ignoring her stupid nightmare and focussing on the real (alive) sourwolf. "You didn't sneak up on me this time." She arched a brow, grinning slightly up at him as he stood before her now.

Derek grinned back down at her, his eyes lit up slightly in amusement. "Yeah, I forgot you were coming. Sorry." He mumbled, trying desperately to keep his face straight, but failing miserably.

Stiles narrowed her eyes slightly up at him. "Pff. Even if --" She arched a brow, wearing a challenging expression. "You still sensed me, from the lobby, I bet."

Pff. Yeah. That's exactly what happened. "Maybe..." Derek mumbled, still failing to not grin at her, and rather epically so.

And suddenly, Stiles could no longer take the distance between them. Especially not when he was so close -- yet, SO fricking far. Ugh. She lurched forward, pressing herself into him completely and wrapping her arms tightly around his waist.

Derek frowned slightly, sensing her rather odd behaviour and her slightly off mood. And even if she was trying to hide that fact; pretend that everything was okay, he knew that it wasn't. He could sense that, too, of course. Nonetheless, he lifted his arms up and wrapped them around the back of her shoulders, embracing her tightly in return.

"Where's Cora and Peter?" Stiles mumbled out absentmindedly as she let out a quiet, but content sigh.

"Cora went off to find Isaac." Derek explained simply.

"Obviously." Stiles grinned.

Derek smirked slightly at her amused tone. "And I haven't seen Peter for the last two days. Which has been really nice."

Stiles chuckled lightly, her arms still locked around his mid-section, holding on for dear life; HIS life.

"So, are you gonna tell me what's wrong?" Derek's tone was casual, but it was still clear that he wasn't really asking.

"Nothing's wrong." Stiles mumbled, pressing her face into his chest; doing anything to keep her from looking back up at him.

Derek sighed lightly, sounding slightly frustrated. "Stiles, don't lie to me. You reek of fear and anger right now and I REALLY don't like it." He stated, his voice slightly sterner now.

Stiles huffed in annoyance, quickly pulling away from him altogether before he could even react. "Look, I didn't come here for a fight. I just came to see if you were okay. And now I've seen you, so I should probably go. Gotta meet Lydia and Allison for a stupid shopping trip." She turned around, stalking back towards the elevator, only to be blocked by the werewolf in a mere split second.

"Why wouldn't I be okay?" Derek's voice calm again now, though, he still held that slightly troubled frown as he stared down carefully at her.

"No reason. I was just checking in. Y'know -- like you do with me? Y'know -- 'cause I'm part of the pack and everything?" Stiles retorted, her tone dripping with sarcasm.

But Derek knew she was lying. And he didn't need to listen to her heart to know that. He knew that, because she always turned to anger to protect herself. Just like he did. And for once, he wasn't angry. Well, not with Stiles, anyway. "I don't believe you. It's more than that." He stated simply.

To which, Stiles scoffed before merely walking around him, to continue on her journey back towards the elevator.

"Stiles," Derek was in front of her again, a slightly desperate look in his orbs. "I know you're scared --" He gently grabbed one of her wrists, trying to keep her from moving.

And Stiles was having none of it, by this point. "No." She quickly yanked her wrist from his grasp. "You don't anything about fear!" She snapped, glaring up at him.

Derek simply stared back at her, eyes slightly widened in surprise.

"Sure, you've got hunters on your ass 24/7, but you're a fricking werewolf with supernatural strength to protect himself!" Stiles barked angrily. "Even Allison and Lydia have got their own awesomeness going on. But ME? All I have is a bunch of unstable magical powers from Coo-Coo Land that stem from my own mental fricking illness issues!"


	94. Chapter 94

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "He's a werewolf. And he's kinda hungry, right now."

"Ugh!" Stiles glanced pleadingly towards the redhead. "Lydia, PLEASE don't make me wear a push-up bra. I hate bras. And I REALLY hate push-up bras."

"Yeah, Lyds," Allison piped up, smirking smugly. "It's not Derek's birthday, after all." She chuckled when the oldest girl merely glared at her. "What?" She asked all too innocently. "There's no way he won't get a boner when he sees that rather impressive rack of yours."

Stiles shot the brunette a "are you for real?" look. "Oh, my God. Are you, 12 years old?"

"Pff." Lydia scoffed, glancing to the brunette. "He's already has his tongue shoved between her legs -- like her rack even matters to him anymore."

"Lydia!" Stiles shrieked, her face heating up quickly.

"What?" Lydia asked, clearly oblivious. "It's true." She added with a casual shrug. "And stop whining like a little bitch." She then added with a stern scowl. "You'll wear what I damn well tell you to wear. AND you'll like it. End of discussion..."

...Derek pulled on his usual black, waist-length, leather jacket just as he sensed a familiar presence entering his bedroom. "You ready?" He asked as he slowly turned to face the she wolf.

Cora glanced down at her own attire -- black jeans along with her black biker boots, black hoodie with a red tank top underneath -- before glaring up at her brother. "Do I not LOOK ready to YOU?"

Derek rolled his eyes, but couldn't help smirking as he replied. "I dunno. I thought maybe you'd wanna put on a pretty, little dress or something, for Isaac."

And now, it was Cora's turn to roll her eyes. Though, she was still glaring slightly over at him as she leaned casually in the open doorway. "Whatever." She mumbled, mentally cursing herself as she felt her cheeks heat up a little.

Derek, of course, noticed and couldn't help let out a light, but clearly amused chuckle. He then grabbed his car keys, his wallet and his phone before walking towards her, still smirking slightly. "So, did you get Stiles a birthday gift?" He asked, arching a mocking expectant brow.

"Yes. My presence." Cora replied simply, shooting him a teasing smirk back.

Derek chuckled as he sauntered down the stairs, the younger wolf following closely behind. "Wow... Lucky Stiles..."

...Allison huffed loudly in annoyance as she stood outside her boyfriend's bathroom. "Scott! Hurry up or we're gonna be late! You can't be late to your best friend's birthday!" She barked, banging on the door once more.

"I'm trying!" Scott practically squealed back from behind the door.

"Yeah, well, try harder!" Allison snapped, now glaring at the door, while imagining it was his face she was glaring at instead. Ugh. Boys.

"Stop pressuring me!" Scott yelped as he thudded heavily around behind the door. Seriously -- what the fuck was he even doing anymore? He wasn't going on a fricking date! Ugh. Boys.

Melissa chuckled quietly to herself as she sauntered lazily down the hallway with a glass of white wine in each of her hands. "Here." She handed one of the glasses to the younger woman.

"Thanks." Allison nodded curtly, shooting the older woman a bright and grateful smile.

"Allison, where's Stiles?" Scott asked curiously.

"I left her in the capably fashionable hands of our own Evil Red." Allison called back through the door, smirking widely in amusement to herself.

Scott snorted loudly, also sounding highly amused. "Well, I bet Stiles LOVED that idea."

Allison merely grinned.

Melissa chuckled lightly, shaking her head in dismay at the teens. "By the way, Scott's driving you home tonight, right?" Melissa asked, narrowing her eyes suspiciously at her son's girlfriend.

Allison smiled slightly in amusement, despite her irritation. "Yeah." She nodded.

"Good." Melissa nodded in acknowledgement, obviously pleased with the answer. "And, um, werewolves -- they can't get drunk, right?" She asked, sounding all too hopeful.

"Yes, that's right, mom. Unfortunately." Scott piped up from inside the bathroom, still.

And Allison couldn't help laughing at -- well, both the McCall's...

...Stiles stood beside Scott, him standing beside Allison, her standing beside Lydia and then Aiden and then Isaac and then Danny, all wearing a similar wide-eyed and slightly gape-mouthed as they glanced across the street to where the large and completely illuminated building of a nightclub sat. But more importantly, and stunningly than that, was the bright red, flashing name of the place above the door: 'STILES' PACK'.

And of course, in front of the gang, stood Ethan, grinning triumphantly at their expressions. "Happy birthday, Stiles!" He cheered.

"Holy... Crap..." Stiles muttered, still stunned as she stared at her name lit up across the crowded doors.

"Dude! What the fuck!?" Scott snapped, glaring over at the Alpha twin. "THIS is your present!? Ugh! Are you trying to make the rest of us look like fricking pansies!?"

Ethan merely rolled his eyes, clearly not all that phased by his Alpha's petty anger. "I'm a broke ass bitch, just like the rest of us. I had to improvise. So get the fuck over it."

To which, Danny, Isaac and even Allison laughed at.

"Improvise?" Stiles finally pulled herself together, now over her initial shock, though, just barely, really. Because... Again; holy... Crap...

Ethan nodded. "Yeah. I do a few errands for people around town and in return, some of 'em owe favours. And I've also made a few good friends out of the deal -- one of whom is the owner of this fine-ass establishment." He explained. "His name's Joe. He's a good dude. He just bought the place a month and a half ago and he's already fully open for business. Anyway, we got talking, he mentioned he needed to think up a new name for this new club his opening, and he already owed me a couple of favours, so I thought -- 'Why not?'"

"Douche." Scott grumbled under his breath.

Ethan merely rolled his eyes, still ignoring him. 'Suck it up, pup'.' He thought with a mental smirk of rather smug amusement.

Stiles, too, ignored her jealous best friend completely as she launched forward, wrapping her arms around the twin's shoulders and hugging him tightly. "You are officially awesome, forever." She grinned up at him.

Ethan simply hugged her back, chuckling lightly in amusement...

...Isaac's eyes widened as he took in the large masses of people. "Holy shit. This place is busy as fuck." He called out over the loud heavy bass, dance music.

"I told you." Ethan nodded, grinning wickedly as he slowly analysed illuminating bodies drinking and dancing, the music blaring loudly and the air humid, but buzzing like electricity.

"Are we gonna be able to find any seats?" Scott asked, sounding slightly concerned.

"Stop acting like a geriatric!" Lydia snapped. "We're gonna be drinking and dancing until we can't even fucking walk anymore."

"She's got a point." Danny stated, sharing an enthusiastic grin with the over-enthusiastic redhead.

"Well, I'm off to the bar." Ethan stated.

"Obviously." Danny mumbled, smirking in amusement when his boyfriend shot him a playful glare.

"Will we even get served?" Scott asked.

Ethan scoffed, looking slightly offended. "Of course, man. That's what these free passes are for. Free alcohol. All night. Also another little gift there." He added, shooting the birthday girl a cheeky grin.

Stiles grinned back. "I think... I think I like the sound of that. Now, gimme, gimme, gimme." She grinned, making grabby hands for the small stack of black cards in the Alpha's hands.

"Alright! Yes!" Ethan chimed, quickly handing her one first before handing one to each of the others.

"Hello, gang. And a VERY happy birthday to Miss Stilinski."

The "gang" all snapped their heads towards the sound of that all too familiar voice.

"Oh, great." Isaac muttered, rolling his eyes.

"Ugh. What're YOU doing here?" Lydia asked, looking the least impressed out of all of them.

"Don't be like that, Lydia." Peter shot her a mocking pout.

Lydia simply scoffed, folding her arms across her chest in annoyance.

And Stiles wasn't going to let anything or anyone ruin her night, not tonight. "Okay, superfreaks -- play nice now." She shot them all -- including Peter; especially Peter -- a stern look for emphasis.

To which, most of the other scoffed in annoyance, Peter, of course, smirked smugly, and ALL of them actually did as they were told after that. After all, it wasn't any of their birthdays.

"Okay," Stiles nodded, satisfied, for now. "I'm gonna go get drunk off my face. So... Feel free to join me on that." She announced before making her way towards the bar, slowly worming her way through the already drunken masses...

...Derek stared across at the loud and crowded building, letting out a tired sigh. Even if he was barely into his mid-20s, he still felt like he was too old for all of this partying crap. But of course, he was only here for Stiles. Like he knew he always would be.

Standing to his left, Cora quickly dug into her pocket, pulling out her phone before dialling the Alpha twin's number. She smirked when he answered with a cheery greeting. "Yeah. Hey. We're outside. Come get us, dickbitch." She chirped cheerfully back before hanging up and shoving her phone back into her pocket.

Derek glanced over at her and smirked lightly in amusement. "You're SUCH a social, little Butterfly."

Cora scoffed at that, glaring up at him. "Pot. Kettle. Black... DICKBITCH."

To which, Derek's lighthearted expression instantly morphed into a glare...

...Stiles grinned gleefully up at the barmaid and she took her (totally awesome) black card and her little shot of tequila -- because -- why the heck not, right? It WAS her birthday, after. "Thanks!" She chirped loudly over the music.

"You're welcome, honey." The blonde barmaid smiled brightly back, nodding curtly before tending to her next customer.

Stiles sat back on the bar stool and stared hungrily down at the rather large shot glass of golden liquid in her hand. "Yummy!" She grinned, licking her lips and slowly raising the fully glass to mouth.

"Took the word right outta my mouth, sweetcheeks."

Stiles paused, her glass mid-air as she slowly turned to her right to see a slightly older guy -- who, with mousy brown hair, creamy-pale skin and a slightly muscular, but lean frame, was certainly very easy on the eyes. Still, he, in no way even compared to Der -- She paused again, her thoughts even somehow pausing, too, when she finally noticed the rather creepy and leering look he was giving her. 'Ugh. I KNEW I shouldn't have worn this stupid bra! I am gonna KILL Lydia!'

"What's your name, pretty thing?" He asked, a small smirk now tugging at the corners of his lips. He sauntered closer, taking the bar stool beside hers.

"Stiles." She replied simply, though, keeping it polite, for now. She slowly placed her (unfortunately, still full) shot glass back onto the bar before turning her gaze back to his.

"I'm Alex."

Stiles gave a nod of acknowledgement, even managing to offer a small smile.

"So, you here alone?" Alex asked, arching a brow, his smirk also widening slightly.

Stiles fought the urge to punch him in the face, gritting her teeth a little behind her pleasant smile. "No. I'm out with friends and my boyfriend."

"Boyfriend, huh?" Alex smirked widened. "Well, I don't see him around anywhere."

And Stiles was about to retaliate to that smug tone in his voice as he said that, but as usual, sourwolf's timing was fricking impeccable.

Derek slid calmly onto the bar stool, the other side of his mate. "Hi." He shot the smaller male a pleasant smile, even if his eyes clearly state: "She's mine, so fuck off or die right now." Because yeah, males had their own fricking expression code going on. Ugh.

"Uh... Hi?" Alex looked somewhere between confused and annoyed now. "Do you mind, dude? I'm kinda in the middle of something here." He stated rather rudely as he motioned between him and Stiles.

Stiles arched a brow, staring incredulously at the idiot now. 'Is this guy even for real? Am I having another nightmare? Seriously... I wanna know...' She scoffed lightly, all politeness and pleasantries now forgotten to her. "Do you mind, dude?" She retorted, obviously mocking him. "THIS," She motioned to sourwolf with a jab of her thumb, her eyes narrowed in on the idiot sitting the other side of her. "Is my boyfriend."

Alex scoffed lightly. "Well, maybe he shouldn't let you wander off."

"Maybe YOU should scram before you piss me off more than you already have." Derek cut in, his voice calm, but also as stern as his expression.

Again, Alex snorted, seeming highly amused. "Or WHAT?" He challenged, arching an expectant brow.

Stiles held her breath at that, her eyes now shifting slowly over to the werewolf. 'Oh, God... PLEASE don't kill him. He's not even worth it.' She thought in both annoyance and desperation as she waited for the chaos to commence. Though, it never did, much to her surprise.

Derek simply leaned forward on his stool, leaning over his mate, as he stared calmly at the idiot human. He then closed his eyes briefly, snapping them open to reveal his blazing red orbs.

Alex suddenly paled considerably before quickly stumbling from his seat from hurrying to move away. "What the FUCK!?" He snapped. "What the FUCK are you!?" He asked, his eyes widened in both anger and fear; though, mostly fear -- and much to the werewolf's satisfaction, of course.

"He's a werewolf. And he's kinda hungry, right now." Stiles taunted, unable to help smirking smugly.

Derek chuckled, unable to help himself, neither. He then glared back at the now slightly trembling male, his orbs still burning red. "You can run away now."

"Okay!" Alex exclaimed before turning hastily around and shoving his way back through the drunken, dancing crowds.

"Y'know," Stiles slowly turned around in her seat to face the werewolf. "That was pretty mean of you." She simply noted, wearing a small, but clearly amused grin.

"Yeah, well," Derek shrugged casually. "He deserved it for tying to pull his stupid moves on my girl."


	95. Chapter 95

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stiles grinned. "Don't be jealous, kitten."

"I'm sorry." Stiles sighed, looking a little guilty.

Derek frowned, slightly misunderstanding her shameful expressed. "For what?" He shot her a completely confused look. "For THAT idiot?" He asked with a light scoff -- referring to Alex; the douchebag who actually thought he had a chance with HIS girl, let alone thinking he also had the chance of putting Derek in his place. 'Pff. Douchebag.'

"What?" Stiles glanced back at him, briefly confused. "No." She shook her head. And though she was still feeling like a total bitch for earlier today, she still couldn't help smiling slightly. "I meant for snapping at you earlier. It was totally uncalled for." She explained. "So, again; I'm sorry." She added, wearing sheepish smile.

And in that little realisation, Derek smiled as he slid off of his bar stool. He moved closer, wedging his waist between her thighs from where she was still sat on her own stool. "Forget about it now. Just make sure you enjoy tonight." He assured her as he rested his hands on top of her bended knees.

Stiles nodded and grinned. "I can do that."

Derek grinned back at her. "Good." He mumbled before finally leaning, placing his lips over hers.

"Hey, lovebirds! Break up the P.D.A. before I throw up on you both!"

Derek pulled back reluctantly away from his mate, and not without a quiet, but annoyed growl.

Stiles chuckled lightly at the irritated scowl now etched into the sour wolf's (pretty) brows. She slowly turned her head to the side to see Ethan standing beside them both, with a middle-aged --but still fairly attractive for his age -- looking man standing beside him. "Hey, Tweedledee! 'Sup?" She smiled brightly at him as Derek moved to standing behind her instead.

"Stiles," Ethan grinned broadly back at her. "THIS," He motioned to the older man beside him. "Is Joe Barnes; the owner of this fineass establishment."

"Oh! Hi, there!" Stiles perked up considerably as she slid off of her bar stool. "It's really good to meet you." She smiled politely and held out her hand for him to shake.

Joe smiled brightly back at her as he reached out and shook her hand. "And you, my darling. I heard that it's your birthday today, so; happy birthday."

Stiles smiled gratefully in return and gave a curt nod. "Thank you. Oh, and thank you for naming this place after me. Seriously! I almost had a fricking heart attack when I first saw." She grinned widely, the excitement twinkling in her large, whiskey, doe orbs.

Joe chuckled loudly with fond amusement. "Well, you should thank Ethan, really. He's been a fricking God-send to me, these last few months. So, it's the LEAST that I could do."

Stiles grinned over at the werewolf, who shot her his usual broad smirk back.

"So, this the little Derek Hale all grown-up, huh?" Joe asked, finally taking notice of the other werewolf.

Derek frowned, clearly confused, as did Stiles, now, too.

"Apparently, Joe here, knew your mom." Ethan explained, still grinning. "Only found out tonight when I told him who I was here with."

Joe smiled and nodded.

"So, wait -- do you, like... KNOW?" Stiles asked warily.

Joe chuckled loudly, again. "I used to be an emissary for a pack up in Seattle. Years ago, now."

Stiles simply nodded in acknowledgment.

"I take it you don't remember me, then?" Joe arched a brow at the oldest werewolf.

Derek shook his head. "No... Sorry."

"Ah, no worries." Joe waved a hand, dismissing the matter. "You were only about 2 years old at the time, anyway. And I suppose I didn't stick around long enough for you to remember. I've always been on the move. Just the way I live and always have." He shrugged casually. "Anyway, are you guys all enjoying yourselves?" He asked eagerly, glancing hopefully to each of them.

"Well, we just got here, really." Stiles explained.

Joe nodded in acknowledgement. "Well, you guys have any problems, come find me -- either over at the bar or by the front doors."

"Will do." Stiles nodded and grinned. "Thanks!"

"No problem." Joe smiled brightly. "I'm sure I'll see you around at some point. Have fun, folks!" He chimed before sauntering back through the heavy masses of people...

...A couple of hours later, and Scott had actually managed to find an empty table for the group, though, mostly for himself. Besides, it wasn't as if the others complained. Especially when there was no frigging room left over at the bar to enjoy your frigging drink. Still, he couldn't complain, neither. Not when said drinks were completely free, all night long. Damn, he thought, he may actually be able to get drunk tonight. And that thought certainly made him perk up a little.

Along one side of the booth, Scott had slid in first, seated next to the illuminated, brick wall, Allison beside him, then Lydia and Aiden. And on the opposite side, Derek seated next to the wall, Stiles beside him, then Danny and Ethan. And of course, Isaac and Cora had long since slipped away from the group to grab their own small table. And then there was Peter, who had somehow managed to find a free stool at the bar.

"So, Stiles," Lydia piped up, nursing the rest of her glass of wine. "I didn't buy you a gift, but Allison and I have agreed to take you out on a shopping trip. Totally our treat."

Stiles blushed slightly, feeling slightly embarrassed, though, still grateful. Seriously, Lydia never spent her money unless she most certainly had to. Or unless it involved purchasing clothes or shoes for herself. "You don't have to." She insisted. "Tonight is a blast just with us all being here and actually having a normal time."

"Amen to THAT, my sister." Aiden said, raising his half empty beer bottle to her and grinning widely.

Stiles smirked lightly.

"It's nothing, really. And it'll be fun." Allison insisted.

Stiles eyed her suspiciously, clearly not convinced. "Define 'fun'."

Allison giggled. "Lydia promised to let you chose what you wanted to buy." She shot the redhead a reminder in the form of a stern glare.

Lydia scoffed. "No. I said I would let her chose A FEW things." She corrected snootily as she knocked back her last of a set of three tequila shots.

Stiles huffed, oblivious to Derek's amused smirk. "I hate you." She grumbled before knocking back a vodka shot of her own.

"I hate you, too, bitch." Lydia chirped back, wearing a far too pleased smile.

"Okay, you guys are boring me. I'm going to dance." Ethan announced as he hauled himself out of the booth.

"Rude." Stiles muttered.

"Yeah." Allison agreed, glaring at the werewolf. "We're here for Stiles birthday."

"Yeah." Ethan nodded, shooting the huntress a "duh" look. "Stiles," He grinned at her. "Wanna dance, birthday girl?"

"Meh, I'm not drunk enough... Yet." Stiles grinned mischievously back up at him.

Ethan chuckled and nodded. "Alright. Well, hurry up!"

"Aye-aye, Captain Furball!" Stiles gave a mock salute, laughing when he simply responded by flipping her off.

"Oh, Ethan," Lydia piped up, feeling her phone finally vibrate with the message she was secretly waiting for. "You got that last V.I.P. card for me?"

Ethan nodded, smirking knowingly at her and ignoring all of the suddenly confused glances.

"Who else is coming?" Stiles asked, staring curiously at the redhead.

"Yeah, everyone we all know is here." Scott stated, looking completely bewildered.

"Yeah, even Peter's here." Aiden added, smirking in amusement. 'We are such a bunch of friendless losers... Ugh. When the hell did I become one of these people!?'

Stiles snorted in amusement at that, earning another similar smirk from Aiden and Derek.

"Well, I didn't expect Peter to show up tonight." Lydia grunted, glaring in annoyance. "But if it's okay with you, Stiles," She shot the older girl a genuine look. "I invited Malia. Since... Y'know, she's pretty much got no one left. Even her dad doesn't wanna know her anymore."

Stiles nodded, shooting her an understanding look. "Yeah, it's cool. I haven't seen her since... Well, the whole possession thing."

"Thanks." Lydia nodded, smiling gratefully. "I just, I don't really know why, but I feel like we need to protect her."

Stiles nodded, silently gulping. And now, she felt slightly nervous about the whole making out with Malia thing. 'Oh, God... What if she punches me, again? And what the fuck am I gonna tell Derek!? Oh, God, oh, God, oh God, oh, G --'

"I'm gonna go meet her. I'll be right back." Lydia announced, grabbing the black card from Ethan. She then rose from the end of the booth and began to rudely shove her way through the busy crowds.

"Danny, baby, you're not gonna let me dance alone, are you?" Ethan pouted.

Danny chuckled as he rose from the booth. "Obviously not."

"Then, let's go, cowboy!" Ethan grinned broadly, grabbing his boyfriend by the front of his shirt and dragging him away towards the dancefloor.

"Okay, well, I'll go get the next round of drinks." Scott announced, shaking his head at the couple, though, smiling slightly. "What does everyone want?"

"Another round of tequila for everyone." Aiden piped up, lifting up his empty shot glass. "Oh, and another brandy on the rocks."

"I'll go with you." Allison followed him up as he, too, rose from the booth. "Stiles?"

"I'll just stick to the beer and tequila tonight. Don't wanna mix too much and then end up vomiting." Stiles said, smiling sheepishly.

"And Der-Bear?" Allison asked, smiling all too innocently.

Derek shot her a brief glare, but said nothing of it. For now, anyway. This was SO Stiles' fault! Ugh! And the worst part was that he wasn't actually even all that angry about it anymore! Again; all Stiles' fault! And again; ugh! "Just a beer. Thanks."

"Alright." Allison nodded. "Let's go, pup'!" She chimed, giving her boyfriend's backside a playful swat.

"I'll show YOU a PUP'!" Scott scoffed, grinning manically as he grabbed her around the waist and effortlessly lifted her over his shoulder.

"Scott!" Allison squealed, trying to sound angry, though, failing miserably as she began to giggle loudly.

Scott smirked, ignoring her efforts altogether as he moved through the crowds with her still slung over his shoulder.

Stiles chuckled, shaking her head at the couple. 'Boy, I hope that's not how corny Derek and I look.'

"Hey, peeps! We're back!" Lydia announced her presence suddenly, and straying slowly behind her was the young werecoyote.

"Hey, Stiles..." Malia smiled sheepishly, looking slightly nervous. "Um... Happy birthday."

Stiles smiled gratefully. "Thanks." Yes. 'Thanks for not punching me, again.' She patted the empty space beside her. "Have a seat. I'll get Scott to get you a drink when he gets back with ours."

"No need. I'm gonna go see what's taking so fricking long." Aiden grumbled as he rose from his seat and quickly disappeared into the crowds.

"C'mon, we're all friends here." Lydia smiled encouragingly as she slid into the spot her boyfriend had previously occupied.

Malia nodded, forcing herself to loosen up a little. They were her friends, kind of. They were her kind of crowd, at least. The supernatural crowd of freaks, that was. She slid into the booth beside Stiles, leaning back and smiling awkwardly. "So, uh, that guy your boyfriend?" She asked the redhead, anything to fill the stupid silence.

Lydia smiled and nodded. "Yup. That's Aiden. He's got an identical twin brother; Ethan. I'm sure you've seen him around school."

Malia nodded.

"And this is Derek Hale." Lydia motioned over to him. "Stiles' boyfriend, and Peter's nephew."

"Oh," Malia looked slightly surprised as she stared at him. "I've seen you around, but I didn't know you were a Hale... You're a werewolf?" She asked, simply curious. It would certainly explain why he smelled like Scott. That Aiden guy, too. And probably his brother, if they were born that way, anyway. She still had a lot to learn about this new world, she knew that. But she was getting there, slowly, slowly.

Derek simply nodded in response, staring curiously at the young shifter. "And you're a werecoyote." It wasn't a question. He knew what she was. And she wasn't the first of her kind he had encountered.

Nonetheless, Malia nodded, even if she knew he knew. If he was a Hale, he was born a werewolf, so he was probably a lot more fricking knowledgeable than her. "So... I guess you're my cousin." And that wasn't a question, neither. But she just felt like she had to say it; to just get it all out in the open; to just try to clear the air, if only a little. She didn't want to be alone anymore. The grave of her little sister wasn't enough company for her anymore. And her father didn't even want to know her anymore, because he thought she was a freak; the freak that murdered his entire family.

Derek smiled lightly and nodded. "I guess so." And he was probably a lot more pleased than he was willing to show. He had thought he was all alone after Laura. And then Cora had showed up and now Malia. And Stiles just seemed to be the icing on the cake. He really couldn't have been happier in that moment. And even if he still hated Peter, he still kind of missed the man he used to know; used to actually fricking look up to.

"We have returned!" Allison announced, sporting a small, round tray of small shots of tequila. She set the tray down on the table before sliding in beside Lydia.

Aiden followed with a tray of his own, placing it on the table with a glare as he slid in beside the huntress.

"What's wrong with YOU?" Stiles asked, arching a brow.

Scott laughed as he placed the tray of beers down and slid in beside Malia. "Some guy asked him out, over at the bar."

Lydia snorted loudly, clearly amused as she reached for the glass of Pinot -- which Allison had kindly remembered for her. And on that note, she shot the huntress a grateful smile and a curt nod as she took a large sip of the pale liquid.

Stiles smirked. "Was he hott?" She teased.

Aiden glared over at her instead.

Derek, however, arched a brow at his mate.

Stiles grinned. "Don't be jealous, kitten."

To which, Derek simply glared back in response and to which, both Lydia and Aiden snorted in amusement.

"Ah, feel the love in our pack, Malia?" Scott chimed, bumping his shoulder with hers.

Malia smiled, shaking her head. "Yeah, I feel it." She taunted.

Lydia smirked. "Oh, you'll fit in JUST fine."


	96. Chapter 96

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Derek shook his head at how utterly clueless his girl really was sometimes. "She's got a crush on you."

"So, Lydia asked me if Malia could join the pack." Scott aired all too casually as he took a sip of his eleventh beer.

And of course, Stiles knew him too well, even if he thought he was being smooth right now. Pff. "Yeah?" She narrowed her eyes slightly, letting him know that she knew that there was more to what he wanted to say; knew that he was he was hinting.

"Yeah. I said she could, of course. Since she gets on SO well with all of us anyway..." Scott grinned mischievously. And that grin only grew as she rolled her eyes at him. "You DO realise that word travels fast in our pack, right?"

Stiles huffed lightly. "Nothing happened."

Scott simply scoffed, clearly not believing her.

"And word travels whenever LYDIA is around." Stiles grumbled. "I REALLY need to stop telling that evil redhead... Well, anything."

Scott chuckled lightly. "So, are you like, bisexual or...?" He smirked smugly, clearly enjoying teasing her. "And does DEREK know?"

Stiles shot him a playful glare. "I guess I am. And no, he doesn't." She shot him a pointed look.

Scott held up his hands in surrender. "I won't say a word. Promise."

"Good." Stiles nodded.

"Anyway, what IS it with you and the Hale family, huh?" Scott smirked, unable to help himself. "Next, you'll be making out with Peter."

To which, Stiles expression morphed through disgust, to a glare, back to disgust and then back to a glare, again. "You're vile, dude. I wouldn't even want my corpse touched by Peter Hale. Thank you, VERY much." She stated snootily.

Scott rolled his eyes, but couldn't help laughing...

...Ethan grinned widely. "Woo! Shake it, baby! Yeah! THAT'S what I'M talking about!" He chimed, reaching forward to give a playful slap to his boyfriend's backside.

"This place is AWESOME!" Allison squealed as she and Lydia danced side by side, shaking their own backsides against one another's.

"Bitch, I know!" Ethan nodded, wrapping his arms around Danny's waist and pulling his back to his chest, the two of the bobbing along to the loud dance music.

"I am SO fucking wasted right now! YES! It's been SO long!" Aiden howled. "Bro'," He pointed enthusiastically over at his twin brother. "YOU are AWESOME!"

Ethan grinned triumphantly. "I fucking know!" He squealed eagerly. "And ditto on the wasted part! Like, holy fuckballs, bro'!"

Brandy glass in one hand, Aiden cackled wildly as he bobbed along to the upbeat tune, by himself, without a fricking care in the world. He'd almost forgotten how good it felt to be intoxicated. Almost...

...Malia knocked back a third tequila shot, frowning in annoyance as she placed the tiny glass back onto the bar. "Ugh. That stuff tastes horrible." She wrinkled her nose a little. "Smells horrible, too."

Derek chuckled lightly. "Y'know, you don't HAVE to drink it." He noted, shooting her a pointed look.

Malia smiled sheepishly. "I know." She nodded. "But I wanna get drunk... I've never actually been drunk before -- what with living in the wild for the last decade..." She then shot him a curious look. "What about you? Can werewolves even get drunk?"

Derek grinned, his mind briefly flashing back to when Stiles had asked him that very question. "Yeah, a few times, when I your age. But I had to drink A LOT. It's a metabolism thing. For all of us shifters."

Malia nodded in acknowledgement. "So, um, you and Stiles, huh?" It wasn't really a question. And really, she didn't even know why she had brought it up. Maybe just to fill the silence between them. Or maybe, just maybe she was a little jealous. She liked Stiles, there was no denying that much anymore. But now, it seemed like there was no chance for her.

For a moment, Derek stared curiously at the young shifter; his little cousin. And out of habit, he discreetly scented her. His brow then arched slightly, a surprised, but amused smirk tugging at the corners of his lips. "You gotta be kidding me..." He chuckled lightly, shaking his head before taking a large few sips of his tenth beer.

Malia frowned. "Did you just --" She then glared slightly. Because if there was one thing about being a shifter that she DID understand and excel in, it was scenting. "DON'T do that." She grumbled, now scowling up at him.

"Sorry." Derek chuckled, again, not sounding very sorry, at all. "Lemme guess," He grinned, looking far too smug for her liking. "You two made out?"

"What!? Did she tell you that!?" Malia's eyes widened in horror. "Oh, my God --"

"No, Stiles didn't tell me anything." Derek cut her off, hoping to calm her down. "And it's fine." He assured.

"What!?" Malia shot him an incredulous look. "HOW is it fine!? You're supposed to be my cousin and I made out with your fricking girlfriend!" She practically squealed, looking utterly appalled with herself. "Oh, THIS is just turning out to be the PERFECT beginning to our family reunion!"

"Malia, calm down." Derek cut her off, again, his voice a little firmer. And okay, he MAY have used a little of that Alpha tone, but it helped, so who was he to complain?

Malia took a deep breath. And for this one time, she let the whole Alpha voice thing slide. "Sorry..." She mumbled.

"It's fine." Derek insisted. "Stiles and I have only been together for a couple of months."

"Oh... Okay..." And now Malia just felt embarrassed for her stupid ranting outburst, her cheeks flushing heavily. "She, um, she smells different now." She noted, shooting him a curious look.

And of course, Derek knew what she meant. But he didn't really know if she needed to know about mating bonds. At least, not right now. Instead, he decided to take a different approach. "How?" He arched a brow, shooting her a curious look. Though, he made it clear he wasn't playing dumb, simply giving her a chance; trying to educate her, like he had done with Scott and even sometimes still did, and once upon a time, like Peter had done with him.

Malia shifted on her stool, breathing in deeply, trying to remember Stiles scent. "It's like... I can only smell her on you, and you on her..." She offered, shooting him a look as if to say; "am I right?"

And Derek couldn't help smiling. 'Yep, she's a Hale, alright.'

"She's yours -- isn't she?" And again, it wasn't really a question. And Malia really did try to not sound as miserable as she felt by that fact. "Scott and Stiles explained to me a while back about mates and stuff." She explained when he shot her a slightly confused look. "Scott told me about his bond with girlfriend; Allison, and Lydia told me a little bit about her ex; Jackson. And Stiles is just like, some freaky fountain of supernatural knowledge." She smiled fondly.

"Yeah..." Derek smirked and nodded. "Stiles is Stiles."

"So, do we all meet 'the One' eventually?" Malia asked, biting her bottom lip, while wearing a slightly nervous look.

Derek sighed, looking slightly defeated. "I don't know... I'm sorry." He shook his head, answering honestly.

"No, it's okay. I was just wondering." Malia nodded, shooting him a small, but grateful smile for his honesty. He didn't treat her like a kid, or an idiot, OR a freak.

"Malia,"

Malia's gaze snapped up, her blue orbs falling on an identical gaze of her own. "Hello, Peter." She smiled warmly.

Derek rolled his eyes, but otherwise kept himself civil. Though, only for Malia, of course.

Peter smiled brightly back at the teen. God, she was SO beautiful. HOW the fuck did he ever create something so fucking perfect!? He quickly pulled his stunned stupor together before speaking. "May I join you?" He asked, motioning to the empty bar stool on the other side of her.

Malia nodded, her smile widening. "Yeah, sure."

"I'm gonna go find Stiles." Derek announced, sliding off of his stool and disappearing without another word.

Malia frowned, staring curiously after the other werewolf. "Did I do something wrong?" She wondered aloud.

Peter chuckled lightly, earning her full attention. "Ah, no." He shook his head. "He just doesn't like me too much anymore, that's all. Don't worry about it."

Malia's frown deepened, but for now, she simply nodded, minding her own business. Besides, the man that she truly wanted to know more about was now sat right beside her. This was her chance. "So... I guess I should call you 'dad', huh?" She joked, smiling sheepishly. Anything to keep from awkward silences. Oh, how she hated them so.

Peter shot her a similar smile, looking as nervous as she felt. "Not if you don't want to... But uh, we can take this slow... Y'know, if you even want... Well, this..." God, he had never felt so awkward in his entire life. And great, now he was blushing slightly in embarrassment, too. He was hopeless.

"Yeah." Malia nodded, her smile now back in its rightful place. The father she had known her entire life had practically disowned her. But now, maybe she had a second chance. And that gave her back some hope. "I'd like that..."

...Derek grinned as he crept up behind his mate, relishing in the surprised squeal she made when he wrapped his arms suddenly around her.

"You douche! I nearly fell off my stool!" Stiles whined, glaring up at him.

Derek smirked smugly as his embrace tightened. "Relax. I would've caught you."

Stiles' eyes merely narrowed. "It's my birthday! Why is everyone being so mean to me!?"

"Pff, stop milking it, dude. It's only your birthday for another hour and a half." Scott scoffed, shooting her a pointed look.

Stiles shifted her glare onto her so-called best friend. "And YOU, are now dead to me."

"What!? Why!? What the shit did I do!?" Scott growled, glaring pathetically back at her.

"Well, what's with you always taking HIS side, huh!?" Stiles growled back, motioning to sourwolf by jabbing her thumb into his chest. "You're supposed to be MY bro', bro'!"

Derek scowled down at her before immediately taking his revenge out on her by dragging her off of her stool altogether.

"Derek!" Stiles squealed as he lifted her effortlessly over his shoulder. "Not again! Dude, I'm gonna throw up!"

"You better not throw up down my back." Derek warned, grinning to himself.

"I will!" Stiles yelped back defiantly. "I WILL do that! I mean it! Derek! I am NOT your fricking chew-toy!"

"Hey! Will you just stop with the dog jokes already!? It's VERY insulting!" Scott huffed.

"Oh, go suck a fuck, you drunken furball!" Stiles chided back.

Derek chuckled, clearly very amused by the drunken teens. "I'm gonna have to borrow this one for a little while." He noted to the other Alpha, casually slapping her backside with his free hand.

"Ow! Hey! Quit it!" Stiles squealed.

"You love it. I know." Derek chuckled loudly, an evil grin still spread across his lips.

"Oh, you are SO dead, sourwolf!" Stiles threatened.

"Fine by me, dude." Scott smirked.

"Pff. I wasn't asking. I was just being polite." Derek noted smugly before turning on his heel with Stiles still slung over his shoulder.

To which, Scott's expression dropped before glaring after the werewolf. "Douche..."

...Stiles suddenly began to feel the familiar dizzy feeling of being absolutely wasted. Ugh. Birthdays were bad. VERY bad. "Derek... I don't feel so good..." She mumbled.

Derek halted in the middle of the dancing crowds as he suddenly felt her body go a little lax. Slowly, he pulled her back down and set her down on her feet. "What's wrong?" He asked, though, he already had a clue.

"I think I drank too much... Ugh... Understatement." Stiles winced slightly as she felt her stomach churning.

Derek nodded before taking her hand in his. "Come on, let's get you some fresh air..."

...Stiles breathed deeply, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips as she leaned back against the cool brick wall.

"Feel any better?" Derek asked, eyeing her with concern.

Stiles cracked open her eyes, her smile widening a little. "Yeah. Thanks."

"I can take you home, if you don't wanna go back inside." Derek said. "I'm sure the others would understand."

"I don't think they'd even notice." Stiles chuckled lightly. "They're all pretty wasted, too."

Derek simply nodded, still waiting for her answer.

"I just need a minute, that's all." Stiles assured.

Derek simply nodded in response, again.

"Are YOU not even a LITTLE bit drunk?" Stiles asked, pouting slightly.

Derek huffed out a laugh. "MAYBE just a LITTLE bit." He admitted with a smirk. "But I HAVE been doing straight tequila shots with Malia for the past 3 and half hours." Okay, he wasn't going to bring it up, but he really couldn't help himself. Oh, how he loved to tease, just to see that pretty blush on her even prettier face.

Stiles froze entirely for a few moments, her brain scrambling wildly in search for an actual fricking response. "I'm, uh, I'm glad you two are getting along... Has Cora met her yet?" Okay, so sue her for trying to change the subject.

"Not yet." Derek replied, while biting back a huge grin of amusement. "I haven't seen Cora or Isaac all night." He noted, his eyes never leaving her. Yeah, he could play along. For now, anyway. Just until he could no longer hold on, that was. "In fact, I think they ditched us altogether, a while ago."

"Huh." Stiles scowled. "Rude."

And for some reason, Derek suddenly felt his control crumbling slowly. He could no longer hold on, it seemed. "Stiles,"

Stiles stared curiously up at him. "Derek,"

Derek's grin widened into a smug smirk. "Is there something you wanna tell me?" He asked, a light taunt in his tone.

Stiles mentally cursed herself when she felt her pulse begin to race slightly. "Um... No...?"

Derek smirk widened a little more, his light, greeny-blue orbs twinkling brightly with mischief. "Are you sure?"

And suddenly, Stiles felt herself snap, her eyes narrowing and her lips pursing. "Ugh! You jerk! You already know, don't you!?"

Derek chuckled loudly. "I'm sorry, I don't know WHAT you're talking about."

"Suuure." Stiles droaned, now fully glaring at him. "Well, c'mon then -- who told you? Was it Malia? Or better yet; Lydia?"

"No, to both." Derek replied, still grinning like a fool. "Seems like Malia's a little jealous of me."

"What?" Stiles looked completely baffled now.

Derek shook his head at how utterly clueless his girl really was sometimes. "She's got a crush on you."

"What?" Stiles shot him a disbelieving look. "She does NOT. What? How do YOU even know that?"

Derek shot her another smug smirk, simply reaching up to tap the end of his nose as a response.

"Ugh." Stiles rolled her eyes.

"She asked about us and I kinda called her out on it. Which is when she kinda told me. But not on purpose." Derek explained, looking far too pleased with himself.

"Ugh." Stiles actually wanted the ground to open up and swallow her fricking whole.

Derek chuckled lightly. "You've got a thing for us Hale, don't you?"

"You're mean, sourwolf." Stiles shot him a playful glare. "Maybe I should just hook up Malia instead... Or maybe Cora..." She aired all too casually as she pushed herself away from the wall finally.

To which, predictably, Derek let out a defiant growl before grabbing her by the waist and pulling her close. "I DON'T share. ANYTHING."


End file.
